


Taken

by JazzyJazz98



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Bigotry & Prejudice, Domestic Fluff, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Healing, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kidnapping, M/M, Mild Language, Minor Violence, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con, Organized Crime, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Child Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Police, Post-Pacifist Route, Rape Aftermath, Rape/Non-con Elements, Ratings: R, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-28
Updated: 2016-01-26
Packaged: 2018-05-03 20:13:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 13
Words: 33,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5305277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JazzyJazz98/pseuds/JazzyJazz98
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Six months have passed since the breaking of the barrier, and still, the fear and distrust of monsters remains strong. Some people refuse to co-exist with them, and have decided to take matters into their own hands. Now, Monster Ambassador Frisk is in danger. You've saved them once, and you're determined to keep them safe, as well as their closest friends. However, despite their efforts, Frisk is taken away. Now you must find them. But, you won't be doing this alone; a big-boned, pun-telling skeleton will make sure of that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Ring!

Ring!

Click… 

“Hello? This is Toriel. Oh, hello, my child! Oh, your meeting has ended? Lovely! Well, I hope to see you home soon, my dear. Goodbye!”

Click…

Frisk leaned against the door of their rented sedan, gazing out of the window. In their mind, they relived the past few hours. They had been attending yet another ambassador’s meeting in their attempt to convince the humans that man and monster could live on the surface together in peace. Despite their best efforts, suspicions against the monsters still stood strong. It was somewhat understandable, as monsters had only been on the surface for about six months, and humans were still getting used to them. Still, Frisk hated having to end every meeting knowing that their fellow humans wanted an entire race of beings stuck underground forever. Frisk clenched their fists, a determined look in their eyes. This wasn’t over yet; they’d have to keep trying. Eventually, monsters would gain acceptance, and until then, they’d fight to make it happen.

Grr…

The child’s eyes widened, feeling the rumbling in their stomach. Blush coated their cheeks, realizing that they hadn’t eaten dinner yet. Frisk grabbed a lunch bag and began eating the small dinner Toriel had made for them. As they ate some cold casserole, as the city scenery disappeared, and was replaced with a wooded area. The road was, for the most part, empty, save one other car that was driving alongside the sedan. Frisk couldn’t help but watch it. For some reason, it seemed to be nearing the sedan. Frisk passed it off as their weariness getting the better of them. Suddenly, the car jolted as the other car rammed into it. Frisk looked at the other car with wide eyes, before looking to the sedan’s chauffeur. 

“Reckless buffoons,” he was muttering under his breath. With a turn of the steering wheel, the sedan moved away from the other car. But, to both Frisk and the chauffeur's surprise, it followed. It rammed into the sedan again. Frisk felt their dinner be knocked from their hands. They looked to the chauffer to see if he move again, only to realize that they had nowhere else to go. If they moved anymore, they’d drive into the woods. The other car bumped into them again; it seemed like they wanted the sedan to go off-road. The chauffeur honked, agitated. Frisk felt a sense of dread rise in the pit of their stomach. With one final hit, the sedan was pushed off-road, going into the woods. Frisk’s eyes slammed shut, waiting for the moment of impact. 

CRASH!

Frisk felt themselves shake violently, before finally falling still. They gasped for breath, feeling their heart pounding in their chest. After a few seconds, they undid their seatbelt and staggered out of the car. They now saw that the car had crashed into a tree. The entire front of the car had been pushed in. The unfortunate chauffeur was crushed in the front seat. The child shivered, frantically searching for their cell phone, and dialing Toriel’s number. Suddenly…

POW!

Frisk ducked as a bullet embedded itself into the tree behind them. Not long after the echo of the gunshot died down, they could hear footsteps. They dared to look up. A man was walking towards them, armed with a pistol. He stood over Frisk’s small body, laughing sinisterly.

“So this is the Monster Ambassador, eh?” the man said in a gruff voice. “Hmph. Looks more like a scared little brat to me.”

He kicked at Frisk, but the child dodged expertly. Frisk clenched their fists, standing defensively against the man. The attacker laughed again.

“Stop acting so tough, kid,” he sneered, cocking his gun. “Now, come with me, or you’re a dead brat.”

Frisk stepped back as a hand swiped at them. 

“Stop moving!”

The man repeated his action, but once again, the kid dodged. Slowly, the man smirked. He shot into the air, the deafening sound causing Frisk to cringe. Taking advantage of the child’s distracted state, the man grabbed at them again, tightly squeezing their arm. He began dragging Frisk up the slope, towards his car. Frisk’s heels dug into the ground and they yanked as hard as they could, but it was no use. Frisk realized that soon, it would be all over for them. 

 

What a terrible date, you thought as your cruiser sped down the road. You had spent the past two hours with the biggest asshole you’ve ever had to work with: John. For weeks, he begged you to go out with him. After many refusals, you finally decided to throw him a bone, and he offered to take you wherever you wanted to go. And what did he do? He fell asleep in the movie you picked out because it was “too feminine” for his tastes, and he gave the waiter shit at the restaurant you went to, most likely because said waiter was a monster. Fed up with him, you left without even bothering to order food. Now you were on your way home. Some takeout boxes of Chinese food bounced around in the passenger’s seat. All you wanted to do now was go home, watch the newest episode of “Paging Dr. Lovebot” (starring Mettaton, of course), and eat some long awaited dinner. But as you drove, you saw something up ahead that caught your attention. It looked as if a man was pulling a child to their car. You slowed down, looking closely. With wide eyes, you realized that that was indeed happening. Immediately, you turned on the lights and siren of your cruiser and drove towards the scene.

“Shit!” the man cried, seeing the cop car fast approaching. He yanked Frisk’s arm in an attempt to move faster, but the determined child fought back harder and harder. They actually managed to escape the man’s grip and run off. Cursing, the man shot at them, but the bullets were easily dodged. By this point, the cruiser had pulled up and you had stepped out, pulling out your pistol.

“Drop the gun!” you ordered. “Now!”

The man looked back at you with wide eyes. For a moment, everything was still. You had your gun aimed at the man, the man was gawking at you, and Frisk was hiding behind the trees, watching everything. Suddenly, the man dove behind the safety of his car, for inside, and drove off into the night. You shot at the car, desperate to shoot out a tire or something, but, with a small, “Damn”, you realized that he had gotten away. You hadn’t gotten a good look at his driver’s plate either, but the car looked similar to a Chevy Tahoe. You’d search for it tomorrow. As of now, you had a child to worry about. Your gun went back into your holster as you slowly approached the shivering kid.

“Hey,” you whispered to them. “Come on out; everything’s ok now.”

The child obeyed. Now that you had a good look at them, you now saw that it was the infamous (or famous, in your case) Monster Ambassador, Frisk. You felt your heart beat a bit faster. You had just saved one of the most important people in the world right now. You couldn’t help but feel just a bit proud of yourself, but you then reminded yourself to remain professional. You knelt down.

“Alright,” you began. “Can you tell me what happened here tonight?”

And so they did. Frisk told you about how their car had been pushed into the woods, and how they were almost kidnapped. You just couldn’t believe that there were such horrible people in the world. Then again, you were a cop. The fact that you had this job anyway let you know such people existed. You reached out and patted Frisk’s head.

“It’s alright, Frisk,” you said gently. “Whoever this creep is, I’ll find him and put him in jail where he belongs. But right now, you need to get home. Is there someone you can call to pick you up?”

Frisk nodded, pulling out their phone and calling up Toriel. They excused themselves to talk, while you made a call to a tow truck to deal with the crashed car, and an ambulance to take care of the chauffeur. After the calls were complete, you waited inside your car with Frisk, allowing them some of your Chinese food, as they had lost their dinner. As the hours passed, you found yourself thanking John. Had he not wasted your time, you wouldn’t have saved Frisk from whatever vile thing that man had planned for him. You felt a tear roll down your cheek at the thought. Frisk’s smaller hand grabbed your own, and they smiled up at you, which you repeated. What a good kid, you thought. 

 

Thirty minutes had passed when a red car pulled up alongside yours. Assuming it to be the folks Frisk had called, you turned to the kid.

“Frisk, your people are here to--” you cut yourself off when you noticed that they had long since fallen asleep. Gently chuckling, you picked them up and got out of the car. Emerging from the red car to meet you was a goat-like she-monster, her eyes moist with tears.

“Oh, thank goodness!” she gasped, scooping Frisk from your arms. Holding the child close, she gave you a thankful smile. “Thank you so much, Officer. If anything had happened to my child, I…Oh, I do not know what I would have done.”

“No worries, ma’am,” you replied with a respectful tip of your hat. “Just doing my--EEP!” You were cut off once again, this time because a pair of (literally) bony arms wrapped themselves around you. You turned your head, finding yourself staring into the crying face of a skeleton monster.

“UNIFORMED HUMAN,” he bellowed, sniffling occasionally. “I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WISH TO THANK YOU FOR SAVING OUR BELOVED AMBASSADOR.”

How on Earth could Frisk sleep through this, you wondered. 

“No problem, Mr.…uh, “The Great Papyrus”…Happy to help.”

“hehe…c’mon, papyrus, you don’t wanna crush ‘em, do ya?”

Papyrus was pulled off you by another skeleton, a smaller, chubbier one. This monster seemed to be taking the situation rather well. Unlike the goat monster and Papyrus, he had a goofy-looking smile plastered on his face, although you thought you could see the pinpricks in his eyesockets shimmering in relief. 

“seriously though,” he continued. “thanks for helping our frisk like that. we owe you a ton. a skele-ton.”

“SANS!”

Papyrus shot the smaller skeleton, Sans, apparently, a glare. The goat monster had a hand to her face, quivering with laughter. Sans shot a wink at you. You stood there in disbelief. Was that a…pun? 

“Leave it to Sans to turn a sad time into a happy one,” said the goat monster, smiling. “It is very late now. We must all go home; Frisk needs their rest.” She turned to you. “We cannot thank you enough for what you have done tonight. Please, come to my house tomorrow. I want to make a lovely dinner for you.”

“Wow, uh, thank you, ma’am,” you said, feeling your cheeks heat up. 

After a few more goodbyes and gaining the address to the goat-monster’s (who you now knew as Toriel) house, you were back in your car and finally on your way home. No doubt “Paging Dr. Lovebot” was over by this point, but it was fine. After all, saving a child from abduction was much better than watching some cheesy rom-dram.


	2. Chapter 2

Oh, this is just perfect, you thought as you slammed the door of your cruiser. Getting into the passenger seat was none other than your co-worker, John, A.K.A, the last person you wanted to see today. 

“Let’s get this over with…” you murmured under your breath.

Your cruiser was soon on the road as you drove to the location you were given. You were called about someone disturbing the peace in a small neighborhood. You had to take someone with you as back up, and, unfortunately, the only cop who wasn’t currently occupied with something was John. You decided to pretend that it wasn’t John who was sitting next to you and focus on the task at hand. After a while, you arrived at the house. Out of your window you could see a woman yelling at an armless, reptilian she-monster, their children staring up at them sadly. As you and John exited the car, you caught a snippet of the argument.

“Well, if you can’t control your kid, you should go back to the Underground where you belong!” the woman was saying.

You felt a wave of anger wash over you as you picked up your pace. You pushed the two mothers away from each other.

“What’s going on here?” you demanded. 

“Well,” human woman began. “My son was out playing, and when he came in for lunch, he was all bruised up.” She pointed accusingly at the monster kid. “They did something to my boy!”

John glared down at the young monster.

“Well?” he said. “What’d you do to him?”

You shot daggers at your comrade.

“Maybe we should get the other side of the story before we start making judgments, Officer John.”

John scoffed, but backed off. You looked to the monster kid, your gaze softening.

“So what happened, kid?” you asked.

“Yo, uh, so we were playing football, right?” the kid explained, rocking awkwardly. “And, uh, he was running to the goal with the ball, and I tackled him…y’know…like real football players.” They glanced at the human boy. “Right?”

“Right,” agreed the human boy, nodding. 

“I see,” you said. You glanced at the two mothers. “It looks to me like this was just one big misunderstanding. The kids were just playing a little too rough. Nothing to go crazy about.”

“My son still deserves an apology,” the human mother argued.

“Nah, it’s cool, Mom,” said her son. 

The human woman opened her mouth to complain, but a fierce look from you shut her up in seconds. Defeated, she took her son’s hand and walked home. You turned to John.

“Let’s go.”

Without another word, you both got back to your police car and got in. You waited until the monsters returned to their house before you began chewing out your comrade.

“What the fuck was that, John!? How could you just assume that kid did something wrong like that? Fuck’s wrong with you!?”

“What’s wrong with me?” John shot back. “I was just asking them what happened. Jeez, if I’d known you were so fucking sensitive, I would’ve never bothered trying to deal with you.”

“At least I actually give a shit about people--”

“People? Those aren’t people, those are monsters. They have magical powers and shit to protect them. I don’t know why you rush to help them out so much.”

“Because it’s my duty, asshole.”

“Whatever.”

There was a silence between you. You gripped the steering wheel, your knuckles turning white. Suddenly:

“Get out.”

“Huh?” questioned John.

“Get out!” you repeated angrily. “Get out of my car!”

“Fine….fucking monster-lover…”

The passenger door slammed. Shivering in anger, you drove off back to your police station. The bastard could walk back for all you cared. Sure, he’d probably report you for this, but so what? The worst you’d probably get would be a warning. After cooling down, you went inside and found your storage locker. You pulled out a brown bag lunch and headed to the break room to eat. As you munched on a chicken salad sandwich, you began contemplating. 

Your investigation on the black Chevy Tahoe led you to find a small number of matching vehicles located in the area. You questioned the owners of the cars, even going as far as to bring them in to the station for lie detector tests. You weren’t taking any chances. After lunch, you’d return to the investigation, as well as attend to your other duties.   
Your thoughts shifted to Frisk. How was the kid doing, you wondered. It was Saturday; you assumed they were spending time with Toriel, whom you assumed was their caretaker. If that was the case, it made sense to you. After all, the kid was almost snatched up by some creep. You then remembered the dinner you had been invited to, and a smile sneaked onto your face. No doubt it’d be an interesting experience. Although you had your concerns. Dinners, and other social gatherings, were not things you usually attended. You were quite anti-social, to be honest. Still, Toriel was kind enough to invite you over, and damn it, you would go. It was the polite thing to do. Besides, it could’ve been fun. Only time would tell.

 

The sky was a purplish-orange as you pulled up to Toriel’s house. It was a cozy-looking abode, and staring at it filled you with something you couldn’t name. Taking a deep breath, you stepped out of your cruiser, and walked to the door. After a few knocks, you waited as you heard footsteps approaching from inside. The door opened, revealing Toriel. 

“Oh, hello, Officer,” she greeted. “So glad you could make it. Please, come in. Oh, let me take your hat.”

Thanking the she-monster, you slipped the hat into her hands and stepped inside. Your nostrils were attacked by the intoxicating scent of cinnamon and butterscotch. It was rather warm in the house, and the low light gave the place a cozy feel to it. Better than my place, you thought. Toriel led you to the dining room. Frisk, Papyrus and Sans were sitting at the table, smiling up at you when you entered.

“GREETINGS, UNIFORMED HUMAN!” he called, waving his gloved hand. Why he wore gloves in such a toasty room, you weren’t sure. “GLAD YOU COULD MAKE IT! I BROUGHT AN EXTRA LARGE POT OF MY PRIZED SPAGETTHI FOR YOU!”

You saw Frisk stick out their tongue and shake their head. You tried not to smirk.

“Thanks, Mr. Papyrus,” you said. “I’m sure it’ll, uh, be great.”

Frisk got up from the table, taking with them a piece of paper you just realized had been in front of them. When they reached you, they held it up. It was a drawing of who you assumed you (judging by the blue outfit) saving Frisk from the attempted kidnapper. A shaky smile appeared on your face; this was definitely a first for you. Hold on, what were those grey dots appearing on it? You felt your face, feeling streaks of wetness on your cheeks. Frisk frowned and asked if you were alright. You ruffled their hair, laughing.  
“Don’t worry; I’m fine,” you reassured. “This just made me really happy, that’s all. Thank you, Frisk.”

The smile returned to the child’s face as they took your hand and brought you to the table. As you sat, Papyrus pulled out his cell phone.  
“OH, WE MUST EXCHANGE PHONE NUMBERS, UNIFORMED HUMAN!”

“Exchange phone numbers?” you repeated.

“OF COURSE!” the hammy skeleton exclaimed. “YOU SAVED FRISK! THAT AUTOMATICALLY MAKES YOU FRIENDS WITH THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”

“Well, I guess…hold on…”

You pulled out your phone and put in Papyrus’ number, which he noisily recited to you, number by number. You were drastically quieter as you gave him your number.   
“hey, let us get in on that,” Sans said, pulling out his cell phone. Frisk brought out theirs as well.

“Hold on; I would also like to exchange numbers,” Toriel added as she rushed over.

The next few minutes consisted of nothing except swapping phone numbers. It was actually kind of exciting. Finally, you’d have people besides family members as contacts. 

 

There was another knock on Toriel’s door not long after the number-swapping incident. When Toriel left to answer it, she returned with two more monsters. One of them was a fish-like woman, with blue scales and a bright red ponytail. The other was a yellow reptilian monster with buck teeth and glasses. They hand they were holding hands made you assume that they were a couple. The fish woman looked you up and down.

“So, this is the punk that saved Frisk, huh?” she said, flashing you a sharped-tooth smile. “S’up? Name’s Undyne, and this is Alphys.”

“H-Hiya,” said Alphys with a little wave. 

“Hi,” you replied.

“So,” Undyne began, sitting down with her girlfriend. “Did you give that guy the what-for?”

“No,” you admitted. “He got away. I’ve been looking for him all day, but, I haven’t found him yet.”

You heard Frisk let out a fearful whimper. You smiled at him.

“Don’t worry, little fella. I’ll find him long before he finds you. And when I get him, he’ll pay for what he did.”

“Ooh,” said Undyne, a glimmer of interest in her eyes. “You should call me when you find him. I’ll help you beat him up.”

“P-Please don’t,” Alphys murmured. “We don’t need her getting arrested for assault. Uh…you can have my number, too, if you want.”

You now had two more friends to call. A warm feeling filled you. It was odd; you had only just met these monsters, and they were already growing on you. You couldn’t recall ever feeling like this towards anyone else. It felt…nice.

 

Dinner had finally been served, filling the dining room with many rich, intoxicating scents. It took all your willpower to not stuff yourself like a glutton, but Toriel’s cooking was amazing. Around you, the others were holding conversations. It was then you realized how quiet you were being. Hell, even Alphys, who had established herself as the shy one of the group, was speaking more than you. You frowned; it felt like a typical lunch break for you. The other officers would talk about all sorts of things, while you just sat in silence like a loser. You eating slowed to a stop and you stared sadly at the half-eaten meal. Your memories drifted back to law school and to high school…they were no different, now that you thought about it.

You were shaken from your thoughts by a low voice.

“hey kid, what’s botherin’ ya?”

You turned to see Sans sitting next to you. Odd…you were sure Toriel had been sitting there a moment ago…

“Uh, nothing,” you lied. You didn’t want to, but, you just met these folks. There was no reason to dump your life’s story on them.

“you sure?” Sans continued. “‘cause it sounds like you’re tellin’ a fib-ula.”

You couldn’t help but chuckle. 

“I…I guess I’m not used to eating with a bunch a people like this,” you told him. “To be honest, if I hadn’t been invited over, I’d just be eating dinner alone at home.”

“on a saturday? you don’t get out on the weekends?”

“I go out, sometimes. Just not much. There’s just not a lot of options to hang out, you know?”

“i always go to grillby’s. ever heard of it? it’s a great place.”

“I think I have. Never thought to check it out.”

“you should. hey, you should come tomorrow. it’s karaoke and joke night, the jokes being provided by yours truly.” 

“Well, it’s not like I’ve got anything better to do,” you shrugged. “Fine. I’ll come.”

“cool. you’re gonna have a good time, trust me. my jokes are pretty humerus.”

“Oh my God…” you whispered, snickering into your hands. This…this would be fun…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's amazing how many people have gotten into this story! It makes me feel determined to write more. I promise to try an update as often as I can. :)


	3. Chapter 3

Your heart was racing as you pulled up towards a small office building. According to your research, the owner of the last registered Chevy Tahoe in the area worked here. So far, every other Tahoe owner you’ve confronted turned out to be an innocent person. But now, maybe, you finally found the attempted kidnapper. You found a place to park and went inside, approaching the front desk.

“Excuse me?” you began, flashing your police badge. “Has a Mr. Harold Kleinberg come in today?”

“Harold Kleinberg…” the worker echoed, flipping through a clipboard. “Yes, he just came in a few minutes ago. He works on the third floor.”

“Thank you,” you said, tipping your hat. You headed for the elevator. As the red, digital numbers slowly changed, your heart beat faster and faster. Finally, the doors slid open, and you began walking through a maze of cubicles. The sounds of your heartbeat was drowned out by the sounds of fingers on keyboards. Your gaze shifted, peering into cubicles and eyeing name tags. Finally, you found him. Harold Kleinberg was sitting at his desk, tying away like his fellow employees. You stepped into his cubicle.

“Ahem,” you cleared your throat. “Mr. Kleinberg?”

Harold turned his head, his eyes widening when he saw you. You felt as if you could breathe. It…It was him…the kidnapper. Harold’s hand moved towards a stack of papers. Before you could blink, he tossed them in your face, and rushed past you. You swatted the papers away, and rushed after him. Heads peeked over cubicles, watching the action. Harold led you through the maze, kicking over shredders and printers to slow you down. You continued after him, the emotion you felt last night burning within you, pushing you on. The kidnapper dove into the men’s restroom. As if that would stop me, you thought as you followed. In the restroom, you heard a click. The coward had locked himself inside a stall. You pulled out your gun, walking over to the only stall that was closed.

“It’s over, Kleinberg,” you shouted. “Come out.”

“Go to hell, monster-lover!”

“Open up,” you growled, feeling anger mix itself with the previous emotion. “Before I make you.”

There was no response. You backed up and began to kick at the door as hard as you could. With every kick, the door seemed to be weakening. Eventually, its hinges broke off, and the door slid to the ground. There the coward was, hugging his knees on the toilet seat. You shook your head, reaching in and grabbing his arm.

“Let’s go, scumbag.”

 

The interrogation room was silent. Harold sat in a chair, staring at the door longingly. You sat across from him, watching him intensely. The seconds passed, becoming minutes. Your patience was starting to wear thin.

“Well?” you said.

“Wh-What?” Harold replied, his gaze never changing.

“You gonna tell me what this whole kidnapping thing was about?”

“I…I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Yeah, and I’m the Queen of England,” you shot back. “Don’t lie to me. I saw you. I know you tried to kidnap the Monster Ambassador. Why?”

“I didn’t!” argued Harold. “I-I swear!”

The man flinched when your fist slammed against the table.

“You are 5 seconds away from getting tossed in the slammer,” your voice was slow and ominous as you spoke. “And the men there…they’ll like you. They’ll make every day you spend there a living nightmare. So if I were you, I’d talk and get a shorter sentence.”

That seemed to convince the stubborn bastard. 

“O-Ok…I…I was told to do it,” Harold admitted.

“By who?”

Harold hesitated. You grabbed at the collar of his shirt and yanked him forward.

“WHO!?” you demanded.

“This group I’m apart of!” cried Harold, tears streaming down his cheeks. “They…They call themselves the “M.R.C.”” 

“The “M.R.C.”? What’s that?”

“It stands for the Monster Removal Committee. They’re trying to get rid of monsters. And they wanted me to kidnap the Monster Ambassador to…”

“To?”

Harold refused to speak, his eyes falling to the floor. No matter how loudly or how angrily you yelled at him, he stayed silent. You decided to give up and have him put away in a cell. You felt…conflicted. On one hand, you caught the man that had tried to kidnap Frisk. But on the other, you now had a whole organization of monster-haters and potential kidnappers to deal with. Frisk was in more danger than ever now, and you had to protect them.

 

Man…this was a nice place…

You had just walked into Grillby’s, its warm red-and-brown interior being a huge contrast against the blues, purples, and grays outside. Looking around, you saw mostly monsters, with a few humans scattered here and there. A sort-of jazzy tune played from the jukebox in the corner. Overall, the place felt cool, like a place you could relax in. You made your way to the bar and sat. The bartender was a monster whose entire body seemed to be made of fire. He glanced at you and nodded, which you quickly returned.

“Let me guess,” he suddenly said. How could he do that with no mouth…? “Sans invited you here.”

“He…did,” you replied, flabbergasted. “H-How’d you--?”

“He told me when he came in here earlier. He’ll be back soon enough. By the way: don’t use the ketchup.”

“Oh…uh…ok…” You weren’t sure how to respond to that, so you ordered a soda instead. 

The lack of a distracting conversation allowed the thoughts in your head to take over. They were thoughts of the past and present, ones you desperately wished you could set aside, just for one night. Alas, you were forced to suffer through every lonely lunch, every insult from every bully, every moment when your step-father would…Your body began to quiver. Grillby noticed this.

“You ok, kid?” he asked.

“Oh, yeah, I’m good…”

You couldn’t tell how Grillby felt about that, as he had no face. You were sure he didn’t believe you, but you were thankful he didn’t ask any more questions. You sat in silence for a bit longer, trying to ignore the thoughts in your head, when suddenly, your cell phone buzzed. You checked it; it was Sans. You answered it.

“Hello?”

“hey. what does a skeleton order when he goes to a restaurant?”

“Uh, I dunno. What?”

There was a brief pause.

“Hello?” you said. “Sans?”

“he ordered “spare ribs”.”

You yelped, your hand clutching your chest. It sounded as if the guy was sitting right next to you…Wait a minute…You turned your head, and there he was, giving you a cheeky smile.

“hehe,” Sans laughed. “what’s the matter? you look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“No,” you replied. “But I have seen an asshole. Maybe you know him. He looks kinda like you.”

“nope, don’t know anybody like that,” the stout skeleton winked at you. “but i’ll keep an eyesocket out.”

The skeleton’s bones rattled as he let out a deep chuckle. You couldn't help but laugh with him. Your past discomfort immediately left your mind. 

“you order anything yet?” asked Sans.

“No, I was waiting for you,” you said. “Got any suggestions?”

“the burgers and fries are pretty good.”

“Then I guess I’ll have that then.”

“good choice.” Sans turned to Grillby. “you heard ‘em. two orders of “bergs” and fries.”

With a nod, Grillby disappeared into the back room. You both sat there in silence. You thought you saw Sans running the teeth of a comb against his skull. Grillby returned about a minute later, carrying the order with him. The aroma was nothing like you ever smelled before. Sure the burgers and fries smelled like burgers and fries, but there was something…vaguely different about it. Maybe it was just the way monsters made it. Then that got you wondering…what kind of meat did monsters use? Did they have cows? Or did they have a type of monster cow that they ate? But wouldn’t that be cannibalism for monsters to eat other monsters? Maybe you were just thinking about it too hard.

“hey,” Sans began as you picked up your burger. He slid a bottle of ketchup towards you. “want some ketchup?” Remembering Grillby’s warning, you politely declined. “more for me, then.” You watched, baffled, as Sans chugged the ketchup, emptying the bottle. Monsters, man…they were definitely something.

You ended up eating the two orders yourself, or rather, saving the other for tomorrow’s lunch. Sans seemed to only care about ketchup. Quite an odd diet, but if he enjoyed it, that was his business. For the next hour, you and Sans engaged in small talk, although Sans was doing much of the talking. Most of it involved puns and knock-knock jokes. You mostly asked about Frisk, Toriel and the others. You didn’t feel comfortable talking about yourself…at least, you thought you didn’t. You had never gotten close enough to anyone to try it. Interestingly, Sans seemed to be the same way. If you asked about his life, he would talk more about his brother Papyrus and the things they did together, rather than himself personally. You took it as him feeling the same way about you. It was alright; maybe, if you were lucky to keep Sans as a friend, you could open up to each other. At the hour mark, the lights flashed. The grin on Sans’ face seemed to grow a little. He got up from the chair.

“that’s my cue,” he said. “get ready; i’ve got some real rib ticklers up my sleeve today.”

“Break a leg…bone,” you called after him. You heard him snicker. 

“thanks.”

 

You threw the bar doors open as you rushed outside. From inside, you could still hear the roar of applause and laugher coming from the other patrons. You fell to your knees, gripping your stomach and taking huge gulps of air. That was amazing; you couldn’t recall ever laughing so hard in your entire life. That Sans was good. Really good.   
After calming down from your fit of laughter, you got back to your feet. By this time, Sans had emerged from the bar, a bag in his hand.

“hey, you left this,” he said. 

“Oh, yeah, thanks,” you replied between giggles. The skeleton chuckled.

“still laughin’, huh? what I tell ya? those were some real rib ticklers, weren’t they?” For emphasis, he poked you in the ribs. You held up a shaking hand.

“Oh God, stop,” you said. “If I laugh anymore, I might piss myself.”

“really?” Sans asked. “well, i better stop then.”

“Thanks. Now, I’m gonna head home. See you around…Comic Sans.”

You could practically hear the rimshot in your head. You laughed at yourself. What a dork you were.


	4. Chapter 4

The week went by the same as any other…well, except for the daily visits to Grillby’s or Toriel’s house. You found yourself growing more and more fond of the monsters as time went on, especially Sans and his ridiculous puns. However, this came with a price. More and more stress fell on you to find out who the M.R.C. was and, hopefully, prevent whatever it was they were trying to do. You found recruitment videos, but not much else on them. It made you worry, though, as to how many people were a part of the group. You feared more attempts to capture Frisk would be coming.

It was Friday afternoon, and you were finally free from work. You hadn’t even gotten into your cruiser when your phone rang. Without even reading the caller ID, you answered it.

“Hello?” you said.

“HELLO, UNIFORMED HUMAN!”

“Gah!” you screamed, holding the phone at arm’s length. Putting the phone on speaker, you responded.

“H-Hello, Papyrus,” you said (you now felt comfortable enough to not refer to the skeleton as “Mr.”). “What’s up?"

“WE’RE ALL GOING TO THE MOVIES TONIGHT!” said Papyrus. “WOULD YOU CARE TO JOIN US?”

“Sure, I come. I’ll see you guys later. Bye.”

“GOODBYE!”

Click…

Shoving the phone in your pocket, you got in your car, when you noticed John had been lingering nearby, listening to every word you had been saying. Once you locked eyes with him, he left. You sat there, temporarily frozen. What the hell was that about? Shaking your head, you dismissed it as John being a creep.

 

As you said, you arrived at the local movie theater later that evening. You made your way to the entrance, where your friends were waiting. The second Frisk saw you, they rushed up to you and jumped into your arms, giving you a big hug.

“Oh!” you gasped in surprise. “Haha…hello to you, too, Frisk.”

As you greeted the rest of the monsters, a new one approached the group, eight tickets in hand. He looked similar to Toriel, in that he looked goat-like. When he noticed you, he waved and handed you your ticket.

“Hello,” he said, his voice deep, yet gentle. “You must be that nice police officer I’ve heard about.”

“Yes,” you replied, tipping your hat. “And you must be Asgore, right?”

“Indeed,” Asgore said, nodding. “It’s lovely to finally meet you.”

“Likewise,” you said, smiling. God, these monsters…they were so much better than any human you’ve ever met, besides Frisk, of course.

“Alright,” Toriel said. “Now that everyone is here, let us go in.”

With that, you all went inside. You got near Sans.

“So what movie are we seeing?” you asked.  
“some horror flick,” Sans replied. “hope it’s not too scary.”

“Yeah, wouldn’t want Frisk to get nightmares.”

“oh, it’s not frisk i’m worried about. it’s pap. he tries to act like he’s brave, but in all honesty, he…” He winked. “…doesn’t have the guts to watch scary movies.”

“LIAR!” Papyrus suddenly shouted, turning back to look at you and Sans. “I CAN HANDLE SCARY MOVIES JUST FINE, ISN’T THAT RIGHT, EVERYONE?”

The others hesitated, their gazes falling to the floor.

“N-No offense, Papyrus,” Alphys began. “But you’re pretty b-bad with scary movies.”

“NONSENSE!” Papyrus said. “I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, CAN AND WILL CONQURE THIS MOVIE!”

“Yeah!” cheered Undyne. “That’s the spirit, Pap!”

You and Sans shared a glance.

“betcha five bucks he won’t make it past the first five minutes,” Sans whispered.

“Come on, Sans,” you chided jokingly. “He can’t be that easily scared, right?”

 

Not three minutes into the movie, Papyrus was startled by one of those cheap cat scares. It got him so bad, he let out a high-pitched squeal and launched his popcorn into the air. As popcorn rained from the sky, you reluctantly forked over five bucks to Sans, who continued to give you that same shit-eating grin.

“hehe…no one knows pap like ol’ sansy.”

 

The minutes passed, and the movie carried on. It didn’t really scare you; in your honest opinion, life was far scarier than any movie could be. You glanced at your friends. Alphys was huddled against Undyne, the fish woman hugging her shivering body protectively. A slightly annoyed Toriel was trying to calm down Asgore, who, despite his intimidating appearance, was also frightened by the events shown on the screen. Frisk, taking advantage of their mother’s distraction, gulped down as much soda as they could. You turned to look at Sans. He was fast asleep, the hood of his hoodie framing his face with a halo of fur.

“pass the ketchup…” he was mumbling. The corners of your mouth tugged upwards. Sans was…actually kind of adorable, now that you thought about it…

You hadn’t realized how long you had been staring at the sleeping skeleton until you felt movement beside you. You turned to see Frisk, who was squeezing past you and Sans, clutching their pants. You smirked; it looked like they were paying for all that soda they drank. Sans snorted, the feeling of Frisk brushing past him stirring him from slumber.

“wha…?” he grunted. “is the movie over yet?”

“Not yet,” you replied, tugging the hood over his eyesockets. “Just go back to sleep, ok?”

“heh…thanks kiddo…”

 

Frisk exited the restroom, letting out a relieved sigh. That was the last time they tried drinking that much soda…The kid headed back towards the theater. The corridor was empty, and ominously quiet. Frisk hadn’t noticed it before, but now…they shivered. Maybe watching a scary movie wasn’t the best idea after all. Frisk approached the theater doors, and was just about to enter when a hand grabbed the collar of their sweater, and another covered their mouth. Frisk let out a fearful yelp, struggling against their attacker.

“Stop squirming,” a voice hissed in their ear. The hand grabbing Frisk’s sweater now grabbed their throat, giving it a threatening squeeze. “I’ll kill you, kid. Don’t make it hard on yourself. Let’s go.”  
Frisk was dragged further and further away from the theater, unable to cry for help.

 

Sans’ eyesockets snapped open, the pinpricks within them shrinking. Something bad just happened; he could feel it. He sat up in his seat, which caught your attention.  
“Finally awake, sleepyhead?” you joked, but when you saw the look on his face, you frowned. “Sans? What’s wrong?”

“frisk…” was all Sans said.

Your heart skipped a beat. The kid had been gone for a while.

“Shit…” you whispered.

You and Sans got up, exiting the theater. You looked to the exit and felt as if your heart was going to stop altogether. Frisk was being dragged outside by some man, most likely another member of the M.R.C. Sans followed your gaze, and his mouth fell open in shock. It was probably the only time you’ve ever seen him lose that grin of his. Shaking yourself from your stupor, your sprinted after the man. The man picked Frisk up and ran with them, heading to a getaway van that was waiting to pick them up.

“No!” you cried as the man climbed into the passenger’s seat, shoving Frisk into the back of the van. The van then sped off. You chased it in vain, knowing you couldn’t catch it, but desperately hoping that maybe, just maybe, you could save the child. You running slowed to a stop, and you collapsed onto your knees, tears forming in your eyes as you watched the van pull onto the street. By this time, Sans had caught up with you. He stood beside you, his hand resting on your shoulder.  
“where’s your car, buddy?” he asked you.  
“In front of the building,” you sniffled.  
“well, c’mon. i know a shortcut.”

“What--”

Before you could argue anymore, you found yourself kneeling next to your cruiser. Sans was standing on the other side, standing at the door of the passenger’s seat. You looked around, baffled.

“H-How’d--”

“don’t worry about it,” Sans interrupted. “let’s go.”

Nodding, you unlocked the car, and you both got inside. You were soon on the street, following after the van. It wasn’t long before you saw it in the distance. Your siren blared, alerting the cars in front of you. That feeling took over your body again as you drove faster.

“Hang on, Frisk,” you said to yourself. “Hang on; we’re coming.”

POW!

POW!

They were shooting at you. The cruiser swerved in an effort to avoid the bullets. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Sans. His eye was flashing blue and yellow. He rolled down the window, sticking out his arm, waving it around. Magical bone attacks suddenly appeared out of nowhere, striking the van. Some of them were sharp at one end, and impaled themselves wherever they managed to hit. You could tell he was desperately aiming for the van’s wheels, but to no avail.

The chase went on for at least an hour, before, to your horror, the cruiser came to a stop in the middle of the road. It’d run out of gas. You frantically turned the key in the ignition, watching as the van vanished into the night.

“No, no, no, no, no, no…” you whimpered. “Please, God, no. NO!”

You slammed your fists into the steering wheel, causing it to let out a loud honk. You didn’t care; you just screwed up, big time. Next to you, Sans sat there, staring off into the distance. His distal phalanges dug into the side of the door. His pinpricks had gone completely, leaving two pools of darkness on Sans’ face.

“T H O S E B A S T A R D S,” he suddenly said, his voice dangerously low. “H A V E J U S T E A R N E D T H E M S E L V E S A V E R Y B A D T I M E.”


	5. Chapter 5

Your hand shook violently as you slipped it into your wallet and pulled out $120 to pay the tow truck driver. Your cruiser was parked in Toriel’s driveway, where it would stay until morning, when you ventured out to get more gas. You had already reported the kidnapping through the police radio; hopefully, other officers were responding to it. You could hear Toriel’s sobs coming from the open front door. It felt like a fist was squeezing your heart. How could you let this happen? You should’ve gone with them, to make sure they came back safe and sound…but you didn’t. You paced through Toriel’s front lawn. You couldn’t face Toriel, you couldn’t face any of them.

“hey.”

You turned, seeing Sans standing at the front door. His smile was back, albeit really strained.

“whatcha doin’ out here, kid?” he asked. “it’s cold. don’t wanna turn into a “copsicle”, do ya?”

“Sans…”

Sans laughed, but it slowly morphed into a sigh.

“sorry…” he said. “you should really come in, though. tori needs all the comfort she can get.”

“She won’t want to see me,” you argued, looking away from the skeleton’s gaze. “Not after what I’ve done.”

“that’s not true,” Sans said, walking up to you and taking your arm. “c’mon. let’s go see tori.”

Before you knew it, you were inside. Seriously, how the hell was he doing that? You pushed it out of your mind; you had bigger things to worry about. You were in the living room, where everyone was sitting. Toriel sat in her arm chair, her body trembling as she cried. Asgore knelt beside her, an arm wrapped around her shoulder. Papyrus, Undyne and Alphys sat on the couch. The taller skeleton was silently crying, with Alphys and Undyne comforting. You could see Undyne struggling to hold back her own tears. You backed away; you couldn’t face all the sadness you caused. This only caused Sans’ grip on your arm to tighten. You sighed, and approached Toriel. You got on the other side of her, gently taking her hand. She looked at you, her eyes, usually clear and full of wisdom, were tinted red from the crying. You looked down.

“I-I’m sorry…” was all you could think to say.

“It is not your fault, dear,” she replied in a shaky voice. “Y-You and Sans tried to save them.”

“We tried…” you repeated. “But we didn’t succeed…I…I’m so…very sorry…But, I promise I’ll find them. I won’t stop until I bring them home.”

“Ha…” the goat woman laughed sadly. “I know, my dear. I trust you.”

You smiled sadly at her, before leaving her be. She didn’t continue crying, but simply stared at the ground, completely silent. You sat in a chair, rubbing your tired face.

 

The hours passed; it was soon midnight. Alphys and Undyne had gone home, and Papyrus was slowly drifting off. Sans went to his brother, helping him to his feet.

“c’mon bro,” he said. “let’s get you home.”

As the skeleton brothers passed you, Sans gave you a glance.

“hey…if you don’t feel comfortable sleeping here tonight, we’ve got a couch you can sleep on.”

“Oh…uh…sure, thank you….” You said, slightly astonished. You looked over at Toriel and Asgore. “Toriel, will you be alright?”

“Yes, I will be fine,” Toriel reassured you.

“I’ll look after her,” promised Asgore. Toriel gave him a hard stare.

“Asgore…” she began. Her gaze then softened. “…Thank you…”

Smiling at the goat monsters, you followed after the skeletons. They led you to their house, which was next door to Toriel’s house. You had visited the skele-bros’ house once or twice before, but this would be your first time sleeping over. The three of you entered the house.

“you can sleep on the couch,” Sans told you. “i’ll get you a blanket, but first, pap needs to get to bed.”

“Thank you, Sans,” you said. “Goodnight, Papyrus.”

“GOODNIGHT, UNIFORMED HUMAN,” replied Papyrus, following Sans upstairs.

You sat on the couch, staring up at the ceiling. You still couldn’t believe it; Frisk was really gone. You refused to believe Toriel; it was all your fault they were taken, and nothing would convince you otherwise. A blanket fell over your shoulders, causing you to look up. Sans smiled down at you.

“here ya go, kiddo,” he said.

“Thanks,” you replied, snuggling into it. Sans sat down next to you.

“something buggin’ you?” he asked. You looked at him in disbelief.

“Sans,” you said seriously. “Frisk is gone. I let those people get away with them. Now…they might get hurt because I couldn’t save them.” You looked away, blinking back tears.

“hey…” the skeleton murmured. “chin up, pal. we’ll get ‘em back. i promise ya.”

“We?” you repeated.

“yeah. we. if you’re going to save frisk, i’m coming with ya.”

“I can’t let you do that,” you said, shaking your head. “This is a job for an officer.”

“hey, i’m a monster,” Sans said. “i’ve got magic. i can handle it.”

“No. If you get hurt or…worse…I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. I wouldn’t be able to face Papyrus knowing I let something bad happen to his brother.”

“what about you? we’ll miss ya if something happens to ya.”

“Pssh,” you scoffed, looking to the ground. “You guys barely know me.”

“so? that doesn’t mean we don’t care about you.”

You just laughed. You weren’t anything special; you were just doing your job because you cared about the lives of others. Any other cop would do the same, or, at least, they should. For a while, there was nothing but silence. You continued to look at the floor, while Sans stared at you intensely. Finally, Sans spoke up.

“well…if that’s it…” Sans began to get up. “i’m going to bed. night.”

“Yeah, goodnight.”

You lied down, staring up at the ceiling. You yawned, closing your eyes. Tomorrow, you had a lot of work to do.

 

You woke up to the smell of eggs, bacon and pasta sauce. You sat up, unsure of where you were for a brief moment. As you gradually grew more and more aware of your surroundings you realized you were in the skeleton brothers’ house. You got up, making your way to the kitchen. Papyrus was there, working hard at the stove. He turned, hearing you walk in. There was darkness under his eyesockets (odd, but you were growing used to skeleton shenanigans by this point). Poor thing, you thought. He probably had so much trouble sleeping last night.

“AH, GOOD MORNING, UNIFORMED HUMAN!” he greeted, trying his best to sound as if last night hadn’t happened. “COME! I’VE MADE BREAKFAST SPAGHETTI FOR YOU!”

“Thank you, Papyrus,” you said, smiling. If he wanted to pretend that everything was fine, even just for a little bit, who were you to deny him that wish? You took the plate of food he gave you. The spaghetti was burnt and the sauce was runny, but the eggs and bacon looked halfway decent. You sat down to eat, rushing a bit so that you could leave for work as soon as possible. You returned your dish to the kitchen, handing it to Papyrus, who was already watching dishes. As you left the kitchen, however, Papyrus stopped you. He sounded…noticeably quieter than usual.

“UNIFORMED HUMAN…” he began, giving you a sad gaze. “YOU WILL FIND THE LITTLE HUMAN, WON’T YOU?”

You felt a sharp pain in your chest, and your eyes began to sting.

“Oh, Pap…” you cooed, patting his shoulder. “Of course I will.”

You wiped away a stray tear rolling down his cheekbone, and he smiled at you.

“GOOD LUCK.”

“Thank you, Papyrus.”

After saying your goodbyes, you left. You looked over to Toriel’s house, seeing your car. It was running…? But you hadn’t gotten any gas for it--wait a minute… You ran to Toriel’s driveway, peering into the passenger seat’s window. Smiling at you from inside the car was Sans.

“Damn it, Sans…” you muttered, opening the door. “Sans, what are you doing?”

“sitting in your car,” Sans replied.

“And why is that?” you asked.

“no reason,” he replied.

“This is about Frisk, isn’t it?”

“what do you think, kiddo?”

“I think it is, and, no, you can’t come with me.”

“ok.”

“So…get out of my car.”

“ok.” Sans got out of the car…only to get right back in.

“Sans!” you shouted in exasperation.

“what?” the skeleton shrugged. “you said to get out, and i did.”

“Get out and stay out,” you said.

“nah, it’s nice and toasty in here.” Sans sat back, his arms behind his head.

You grabbed Sans’ arm, tugging as hard as you could, but Sans wouldn’t budge. He laughed, winking at you defiantly.

“good luck with that, buddo. they don’t call me “big-boned” for nothin’.”

“Sans, do you want to be arrested?”

“on what charge?”

“Being annoying.”

“can’t do that, dude.”

“Fuck you.”

“whoa, there, bud. we’re still in the friendzone.”

You weren’t sure if you were blushing out of anger or embarrassment. Probably both. You gave up, releasing Sans’ arm.

“You know what?” you said. “Fine. You win.”

“yay.”

You rolled your eyes, going to the driver’s side of the car. He was like a child…a big, bony child who was old enough to go to a bar. But for some reason, you just couldn’t stay mad at him. No matter how hard you tried to stay mad, you just couldn’t stop the smile from appearing on your face. You quickly shook your head. No, you wouldn’t allow yourself to mess around like this. Fun times with Sans would have to wait; finding Frisk was your biggest priority.


	6. Chapter 6

Frisk awoke with a start. How long had they been out, they weren’t sure. All they could remember was being tossed into the back of a van, their head banging against the floor, knocking them unconscious. Now, they were surrounded by darkness as far as the eye could see. The child squirmed; they seemed to be sitting in a chair, their arms and legs strapped down tightly. Grunting, Frisk tugged against the bindings in an attempt to free themselves.

“Well, well, well,” a voice suddenly said. “The Monster Ambassador is finally awake.”

A light fell on Frisk, the sudden brightness causing them to cringe. A man stepped into view, glowering down at them. 

“Welcome, Ambassador Frisk,” he greeted. “I’ve been expecting you for a while. Comfortable? No? Good. I’m not either, thanks to you bringing those damn freaks here.”

SMACK!

Frisk gritted their teeth as pain shot through their cheek. A red handprint was already forming on their skin. 

“You might be wondering who I am,” the man continued, as if he hadn’t just slapped a child in the face. “Well, I’ll tell you: I’m one of the people whose lives are all fucked up because of you.”

Frisk let out a pain-filled cry as they received a kick in the gut. The wind was knocked out of their small body, leaving them gasping for breath. 

“Now, Ambassador, it’s up to you to fix it,” the man carried on. “Don’t worry; I have just the plan.”

He pulled out a camera, aiming it at Frisk. Suddenly, two more men appeared, cracking their knuckles. Frisk clamped their eyes shut; they were dreaming, they had to be dreaming. This couldn’t be happening. 

“Ready boys?” Frisk heard the leader say. They heard a button being pressed, most likely on the camera. “Action.”

 

Click!

Your living room lights came on, bathing everything in a yellowish glow. It was small, with a couch, a coffee table, and a TV. A few portraits of nature scenery hung on the otherwise barren walls. The room lacked personality like Toriel’s or the skeleton brothers’ living rooms; you had neither the time nor the creativity for that sort of thing. Sans whistled as you both stepped inside.

“nice digs,” he commented. 

“Eh, it’s not that impressive, but thanks,” you replied sheepishly. “…Uh, just sit down and watch TV while I get ready for work, ok?”

“no prob,” Sans said, sitting down on the couch. He gazed down at the coffee table, seeing the drawing Frisk had made you. It was in a cute little picture frame. His smile fell ever so slightly. “frisk…” he murmured.

 

You headed to the bathroom to take a quick shower, about five minutes long. Not as long as your usual baths, but time wasn’t on your side. You sneaked past the living room to your room, and got dressed. As you slipped on your shirt, the door squeaked open.

“hey, sorry to barge in, but ya got any--” Sans began, but he stopped when he saw your back. Scars littered your back. They were quite old, and were barely visible against your skin, but they were, indeed, there. Sans’ smile fell, his pinpricks shrinking. How did you get such scars, he wondered. You quickly put on your shirt and turned to Sans, eyes wide.

“Sans!” you cried. “Wh-What are you doing in here!?”

“uh…s-sorry, kiddo,” Sans said, smiling awkwardly and sweating nervously. He backed out of the door, his hand on the doorknob. “just wanted to see if ya had any ketchup, but, uh, i can see your, uh, busy…”

You turned away, trying to keep your composure, but the tight grip your hands had on your shirt gave you away.

“I-It’s in the cabinet,” you stammered. “H-Help yourself.”

“uh…thanks…”

Sans closed the door. You let out a shaky breath. He saw them. You knew he saw them. He’d probably ask about them, too. No, you wouldn’t tell him. He didn’t need to know. All friends had their secrets, right? This was one of them. 

 

There was an awkward silence in the cruiser as you drove to the station. Your eyes were glued to the road, but you could feel Sans staring at you. You could tell he was just itching to ask you about the scars. Who wouldn’t? But you had to keep your mouth shut. No, you wouldn’t allow that to plague your mind. As if he could sense how you were feeling, Sans spoke.

“you don’t have to tell me anything,” he said. 

“What?” 

“y’know what I’m talkin’ about, kid. i’ll respect your privacy.”

“…Thank you, Sans,” you murmured.

“no problem, buddy.”

The awkwardness faded a little after that. Soon, you arrived at the station. You got the footage of the chase from your dash cam. Hopefully, the license plate of the van was on it. Once you found that out, you could track down the van and find Frisk. You and Sans sat in the break room, watching the footage on a laptop you brought from home. As you watched, your felt your eyes stinging, remembering that you had failed to protect Frisk that night. Sans’ hand rested on your shoulder. You both shared a glance. “It’ll be ok,” his eyes read to you. A wave of comfort washed over you, and you nodded to him. At one part of the video, Sans told you to stop it, seeing the license plate number. IGB-6980, it read. You wrote the digits down and began to search for the van online. It belonged to a wedded couple that lived in the city of Scott Bend.

“Well, Sans,” you said. “It looks like you and I are going to Scott Bend. Hope you don’t mind being in a car for an hour.”

“nah, i don’t mind,” Sans replied. “it’ll give me a change to do my favorite thing.”

“What’s that?”

“doing absolutely nothing.”

You found yourself laughing, even more so when Sans gave you a playful wink. Huh, that was odd; you were blushing, too…Suddenly, Sans’ head snapped towards the entrance of the break room. He held up a hand to you, causing you to be quiet.

“Sans?” you questioned him, but he said nothing. You blinked, and gasped quietly when you saw that Sans had somehow gotten to the other side of the room in about a millisecond. He stepped outside and turned, addressing the person that was standing there.

“s’up?” he greeted. “ya lost, dude?”

You got up and joined Sans. Standing outside the break room was John.

“No,” John replied, backing away. “I’m just standing here, minding my own business. Maybe you should do the same.”

“i would, but,” his pinpricks vanished. “i don’t really like it when someone eavesdrops on my conversation.”

You looked at John, surprised. Had he really been eavesdropping? John folded his arms, looking annoyed.

“So what?” he spat. “This private property, not a place for monsters to hang out and chat. Unless you two were talking about something the chief needs to hear about?”

“Piss off, John,” you snapped. “We’re trying to investigate the kidnapping of the Monster Ambassador. Not like bigots like you would care.”

“Watch what you say to me,” warned John, his voice dangerously calm. “It may come back to bite you in the ass.”

“Is that a threat?”

“No. It’s a promise.”

With that, John turned on his heel and left. You rolled your eyes.

“Fuck him,” you swore. “Don’t pay him any mind, Sans. He’s all talk.”

“don’t care much for guys like him,” the skeleton muttered, shoving his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. “they rub me the wrong way, y’know?”

“Tell me about,” you said as you both headed out to your cruiser. “Yesterday I caught him listening in when Papyrus called to invite me to the movies. He’s a real creep.”

“really?” Sans said, looking deep in thought. “weird.” The thoughtful look soon disappeared. “so, are we goin’ to scott bend or what?”

 

Ring!

Ring!

Click…

“Hello? Who is this? …What do you want? I’m busy…Oh? They’re headed to Scott Bend, eh? Good. Follow them and keep me updated. Hopefully, things will go my way. I have to go now. My boys and I have a little video to put on the air. Goodbye.”

Click…

 

“Hey,” you said, shaking the sleeping skeleton in the passenger’s seat. “Wake up.”

Sans snorted, his eyesockets slowly opening.

“wha…?” he grumbled. “where are we?”

“The van owners’ house,” you said, a serious tone in your voice. Sans immediately sat up, his pinpricks disappearing and the blue glow returning to his left eye. You put your hand on his.

“Calm down,” you said. “Let’s try to be civil first.”

“N O T A F T E R W H A T T H E Y D I D.”

You shivered, your hand shrinking away. Sans calmed himself, noticing how frightened you had become. He smiled apologetically. 

“whoa…my bad, kiddo,” he said. “uh, let’s just try that whole “being civil” thing like ya said, alright?”

You nodded, pulling up in front of the house. It looked decent enough, being a two-story house made of masonry. A wooded area surrounded it and the neighboring houses, giving it a rather creepy feel to it. You bit your lip; something about this place sent a shiver up your spine.

“I’ll go first,” you said, exiting the car without waiting for Sans to reply. You carefully approached the front door, your hand lingering near your gun. Ginger, you knocked. A minute passed. Then two minutes. Then three. You knocked again. After another three minutes of waiting, you assumed that maybe the owners weren’t home. Sighing, you turned to return to your cruiser. It was then the door flung open. You turned back to see a man and a woman standing there, guns aimed at you.

“Eat lead, monster-lover!” the man cried, as they both opened fire.

“SHIT!” you cried as you ran for your cruiser. As you rolled over the hood of your cruiser, you felt horrible pain in your upper arm, lower leg, and upper thigh. Your body fell onto the concrete, and you gasped for air. The pain was absolutely unbearable; it felt like fire was running through your veins. As your vision began to fade, you felt arms scoop you up. A rumbling voice was calling your name. Sans…Sans was comforting you. The pain was too great to reply to him, instead, you fell still in his arms.

“kid…kid!” Sans shouted, shaking you frantically. “c’mon, kid, don’t fall asleep! uh, frisk! remember frisk! ya gotta save frisk, remember!?”

It was no use. You had already passed out. Sans’ grip on you was tighter, and his bones began to shake as rage filled him.

“bastards…” he muttered. Closing his hand into a fist, he punched the ground. The sounds of gunfire stopped, being replaced with screams. Then, there was silence. Sans stood up, your limp body in his arms. The gunners were dead, sharp-tipped bones having risen from the ground to impale them. Sans didn’t care about what the law would say about it; it was self-defense, and you were his witness. Right now, you needed to get to the hospital. Sans rested your body in the passenger’s seat, while he got in the driver’s seat.

“hang on,” he told you in a hushed voice. “i’ll get you some help soon, ok? just hang on for me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dunno if I'm gonna finish this. I'm going through some things involving my depression, and, well...if this suddenly stops getting updated, you can probably figure out why.


	7. Chapter 7

Beep…

Beep…

Beep…

Sans watched as the line of a heart rate monitor jolted every few seconds. Your hand was in his, his thumb phalanx rubbing against your knuckles. Sans glanced at your sleeping face; you looked so calm lying in your hospital bed. The doctors had successfully removed the bullets from your body. Now all you needed to do was wake up. Sans wouldn’t be satisfied until he saw your eyes open.

A knock at the door of your hospital room caught Sans’ attention. It seemed that Toriel and the others had arrived. Huh…they arrived a lot sooner than Sans had expected.

“come in, guys,” he called. When the door opened, however, Sans didn’t see Toriel, Papyrus or any of his other friends walk in, but instead, John. John stared at the skeleton, and the skeleton stared right back, the feeling of hatred lingering over them.

“huh,” Sans began, his playful tone never fading. “somehow, i knew you’d show up.”

“What’s that supposed to mean, monster?” John demanded.

“nothin’. Just a hunch, that’s all.” With that, Sans turned back to you. He heard John approaching from behind.

“Hmph,” the officer grunted. “This is only the second time we’ve met and already I can’t stand your attitude.”

“really?” Sans said, feigning ignorance. “that’s a shame. i’ll try better to appeal to ya next time. that is,” he shrugged. “if i ever bother to care.”

Sans felt a hand squeeze his shoulder rather tightly.

“You should learn to watch what you say to me, Undergrounder. You see them?” John gestured at you. “That could happen to you. Or much, much worse.”

“hehe…i could say the same about you, kid.”

Hiss…wisps of blue magic emerged from Sans’ left eyesocket. A demonic skull appeared beside John’s head, its maw open and ready to blast the man with a beam attack. John stiffened, startled by the sudden act of magic, but he quickly regained himself. He refused to let a monster get the best of him.

“Really?” he began. “You’re really going to attack an officer? Tsk…typical monster, always ready to attack someone.”

Sans’ bones rattled as he let out a deep, belly laugh.

“nah, i’m not gonna hurt ya,” he said. “not ‘cause i’m scared of goin’ to jail or anythin’; honestly, i don’t really care what happens to me. but i’ve got people i don’t wanna leave behind, people i’ve gotta take care of. so, i’ll leave you be. but lemme tell ya this, kiddo. keep bothering us, and, well, buddy…” Sans glanced at John, the pinprick in his right eyesocket gone, and his left eyesocket flashing blue. “you’re gonna have a bad time.”

For a brief second, John saw nothing but darkness. When everything was bright again, the cop found himself standing outside your hospital room, the door shut in his face. He jiggled the handle, but the door was locked. John scoffed, shoving his hands in his pockets and walking down the hall. Despite the careless look on his face, however, in his chest, his heart felt as if it would explode out of his chest.

 

You were finally coming to. Your eyes slowly opened, squinting at the brightness of the room. Your vision was fuzzy, but from what you could make out, you were in a hospital room. Heh, you laughed mentally. This wasn’t a first…A low voice echoed in your head; someone was talking to you. You glanced in the direction of the noise, and saw a familiar shade of blue.

“buddy?” you heard Sans say. “you awake?” His voice quivered, as if he was trying his hardest to not sound worried.

“Sans…” you murmured. “W-What happened?”

“you got hurt real bad, kiddo,” the skeleton explained. “but don’t worry; the doctors patched you up.”

Your vision finally cleared up. You could now confirm that, yes, you were in the hospital. As you rubbed your tired face, the memories came flooding back to you…the investigation, the shootout, the pain…

“You brought me here?” you asked, although it sounded more like a statement.

“of course,” Sans replied. “couldn’t let my friend die, could i? like i said, we’d miss ya if you were gone. hey…what’s the matter, buddo?”

Sans reached out towards you, but you pulled away. Tears were streaming down your face. You didn’t want to admit it, but had you not allowed Sans to come with you, you’d be dead right now. The thought of what could’ve happened was more than you could bear. You felt Sans’ bony hands grab your face. The thumb phalanges wiped your tears away. Sans gazed into your eyes, his grin gentle and warm.

“hey, why’d the doctor tell the nurse to walk by the pill cupboard quietly?”

Oh dear…This had “joke” written all over it.

“Why?” you replied, sniffling.

“so she wouldn’t wake the,” he winked at you. “sleeping pills.”

A breathy chuckle escaped your lips. Sans’ smile seemed to double in size.

“there’s that smile i was lookin’ for,” he said. “everything’s gonna be ok, kiddo, i promise.”

“Sans…” you whispered. You felt a strange, yet warm, feeling in your chest.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

“SANS!?” Papyrus’ voice rang out from outside. “SANS, ARE YOU AND THE HUMAN IN THERE!? IT’S I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS! OH, AND THE OTHERS…”

“Papyrus,” Toriel’s voice followed. “Perhaps you shouldn’t be quite so loud?”

“OH, FORGIVE ME!” shouted Papyrus. “OOPS, I MEAN,” Papyrus then spoke somewhat quieter. “SORRY…”

“You might wanna open the door,” you chuckled. “Before Pap has a heart attack or something.”

Sans snapped his fingers, the lock snapping and the door swinging open. Papyrus, Toriel, Asgore, Alphys and Undyne all poured in, surrounding your bed.

“Oh, thank God,” said Toriel, letting out a relieved sigh. “You are awake. When Sans called us, we came as fast as we could.”

“Who’s the punk that did this to you!?” Undyne demanded as she cracked her knuckles. “I’ll beat the crap out of ‘em!”

You noticed Sans’ gaze falling to the ground.

“Er…that won’t be necessary, Undyne,” you assured the fish-woman. “But thanks for the offer. Oh!” Papyrus had wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into a hug. You face was buried into his ribs. “Uh, Papyrus? You’re hurting my arm…” Papyrus immediately let go.

“SORRY…” he said. You couldn’t help but smile; he was like a big child.

“It’s alright, Pap,” you said gently. “You didn’t mean it.” Taking the large skeleton’s hand, you addressed the other monsters.

“I can’t believe you all would come this far to see if I was alright.”

“OF COURSE!” said Papyrus in shock. “YOU’RE OUR FRIEND! WE CARE ABOUT YOU!”

You felt your cheeks heat up at the kind words. This was all so strange; you had never had friends before, especially not friends that cared about you so much after knowing you for a little over a week. Not even your family cared about you this much, besides your mother. You were shaken from your thoughts by the sound of a cell phone alarm. You looked up. Everyone was looking at Alphys, who was fiddling with her phone.

“O-Oh my, e-excuse me,” she was saying, her eyes glued to the phone’s screen and her cheeks a bright red. “I-I forgot to silence my phone. L-Lemme just…oh…oh my…” Alphys turned pale as she stared in horror at her phone.

“Huh?” Undyne said. “What’s wrong, Alphie? Some punk send you a mean text or something?”

“N-No…” Alphys shook violently. “It’s m-much worse than that…Everyone…g-go to the UnderNet…”

You watched as everyone pulled out their cell phones, going to the website in question. You peeked over Sans’ shoulder, mentally thanking him for being so short. The UnderNet seemed to be like any other social networking site, you observed. You wondered what on it could’ve freaked Alphys out so badly. You heard gasps of shock and terror from the other monsters, and your heart began to race. Sans finally reached a post made by a user named NABSTABLOOK22, who had shared a video titled, “ATTENTION ALL MONSTERS”. The sight of the video’s thumbnail was enough to make your heart stop. It was Frisk, tied to a chair, their body battered and bruised. They were in a dark room, the only light source being a spotlight that shined down on them. Sans’ thumb phalanx tapped the video, and the audio echoed in the empty room.

“Attention, monsters,” a low voice said, one that made your blood run cold. “My name is not important. The only thing you need to know about me is that I am the leader of the Monster Removal Committee. Now, I want you all to take a good look at your precious little Ambassador. I’ll give you a minute.” There was silence for a moment. “Did you get a good look? Good. Because this is the last time you’ll get to see that cute little face of theirs.”

There was the sound of snapping fingers, and on Sans’ phone, you watched in horror as two large men approached the fearful Frisk. You closed your eyes, hearing the brutal sounds of punching and kicking, accompanied by Frisk’s pain-filled grunts.

“Oh my God…” Toriel whispered, absolutely mortified.

After what seemed like an eternity, the beating stopped. You dared to open your eyes. Frisk was now beaten and bruised, as they were in the thumbnail. As they sat there, shivering like a wounded puppy, the voice picked up again.

“Aw, look,” the voice said, the fake sympathy in his voice making you sick to your stomach. “Isn’t that just a horrible sight? But you know what would make it even worse?”

The camera shook a bit, as if the holder was passing it off to someone else. A man approached Frisk, kneeling besides the child, bringing a knife to their neck. Your mouth fell open as you now recognized the man: your step-father.

“No…” you whispered.

“If the kid was DEAD,” your step-father continued. He dug the knife into Frisk’s skin, not enough to cut them, but enough to drive in his point. “But…I won’t. That is, if you monster scum are willing to meet the demands of the M.R.C. Leave. All of you. Go back to the Underground where you belong and don’t come back. Only then will your precious little Ambassador be set free. But, if not…heh heh…I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

The video cut to static. The hospital room was silent. You were shaking your head as memories of the past came flooding back to you. This case had gotten serious, more so than it was before. Frisk was at risk of assassination unless the entire monster population left for Mt. Ebott. Not only that, but the man apparently behind the organization you were after was a man who had filled so many years of your life with pain and misery. Without thinking, you threw off your blankets and dragged yourself out of the hospital bed. Pain shot through you, and with a cry, you fell over. Asgore’s arms wrapped around you, holding you up. You struggled, knowing it was futile, but determined to leave.

“Please,” you begged. “Let me go. I need to find Frisk. Before they…Oh, God, Asgore, please!”

“Please, calm down,” Asgore told you. He pulled you back to your bed. You struggled to get up and push him away, but he was much too strong for you. Too make matters worse, Undyne joined in, grabbing your arm and holding you down. You continued to fight, determination pushing you on. Suddenly, a blue aura surrounded your arms and legs. You felt yourself losing control of them, and they stiffened. Your eyes darted to the side, and you saw Sans, his left eyesocket glowing.

“chill, kiddo,” he said. Despite his attempts to appear calm, you could see tension in his face. His jawbone was tight and his body was shaking. He was angry, you knew he was, but still, he tried to hide it. The skeleton closed his eyesockets, letting out a gentle chuckle. “now, i think i speak for all of us when i say, we’re not goin’ anywhere.”

Soft murmurs of agreement emerged from the other monsters.

“we’re getting’ frisk back, and not by going back to the underground,” declared Sans. He looked to you. “you’re in no shape to be movin’ around, buddy. i’ll do the investigation for you.”

You and Papyrus gasped.

“SANS!” said Papyrus. “THAT’S THE LEAST LAZY THING I’VE EVER HEARD YOU SAY!”

“Sans, I can’t let you do that,” you argued. “This is my job, and it’s a dangerous one at that. It’s my job to protect civilians, not let them get into danger.”

“i’m pretty sure we’ve had this conversation before…” Sans murmured, shrugging carelessly.

“Sans, I think they are right,” Toriel spoke up. “This is too risky. As much as we all want Frisk back, letting you put yourself at risk like that is foolish.”

You fought against Sans’ magic.

“Please,” you sobbed. “Just let me go. Let me find them.”

“no way, kid, not in your condition.”

“Stupid human body,” you spat. “Why can you heal faster? There has to be some way I can just get better quicker.” You looked up at the monsters, desperation in your eyes. “Monsters have magic, right? Surely you don’t have healing powers of some sort?”

“We do, but monsters are much weaker than humans,” said Toriel with a sigh. “I doubt our magic could heal you.”

“M-Maybe not completely,” Alphys spoke up, a contemplative look on her face. “I mean…there are some very strong monsters here…not to mention two powerful boss monsters…I think…i-if we put our magic together…maybe…the healing process could be sped up…There may be some side effects to this, however…”

“Yes!” you exclaimed. “Please! I want to do this!”

“A-Are you sure?” Alphys asked, nervously adjusting her glasses. “Right when you least expect it…something bad could happen.”

“If it’s for Frisk,” you began slowly. “It’ll be worth it.”

There was a silence. Suddenly, Undyne spoke.

“Well, if Alphys thinks we should, then I’m doing it!”

“I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL PROVIDE MY MAGIC AS WELL!”

“As will I,” Asgore said.

“I suppose I will too…” Toriel added. “I really hope this works.”

“well, i might as well throw some of my magic in as well,” Sans said.

With that, the monsters surrounded you, their hands resting on you. You closed your eyes, feeling the magic enter your body. It felt like a warm surge of energy was spreading through you, reaching every part of you, from the top of your head to the tips of your toes. Colors flashed behind your eyelids, blue, yellow, green, white, and red. The colors took a heart shape, although something told you they were more than just plain hearts...

After a while, you opened your eyes. The monsters were backing away. It seemed that the magic healing process was complete.

“Alright, dear,” said Toriel. “Try to stand up.”

You swung your legs over the side of the bed, standing up. You wobbled; the pain had been replaced with numbness. After a moment’s hesitation, you took a few steps forward. You were doing it; you were walking! You moved your once injured arm; it was functioning normally. It seemed that you were finally ready to return to the investigation. You smiled back at your friends.

“Thank you,” you said gratefully. “You don’t know how much this means to me. Now, I’m going to bring Frisk home. I promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting back to this. I hope I manage to finish this. I've been trying to handle my depression for a while, but I'll try not to let it get in the way of this fanfiction, since I know a lot of people really like it.


	8. Chapter 8

A low growl echoed in the dark room. Frisk held their stomach; their dinner hadn’t been exactly filling, to say the least. In front of the child was a plate that held the bones of some sort of poultry. There had only been a few scraps of meat on the bones, which Frisk quickly took care of. Unfortunately, it seemed that was all the kid would be eating for the night. They sighed; oh, how they missed their goat mom’s cooking…

There was a cup of not-so-clean water near the plate. Frisk took a few large gulps from it; hopefully, the water could trick their body into thinking it was actually full. After setting the cup down, Frisk huddled in the corner, pulling their sweater tighter against their body for warmth. The only thing Frisk could remotely consider “good” was that the wounds from their beating didn’t hurt so much anymore. The child narrowed their eyes, determination filling their body; they had to find a way out of here. Maybe, if they could just get away from this place, and back to civilization, they could call you and help you to find them. But how to do it? Frisk was only let out of this room to go the restroom, and when that happened, they were blindfolded, so getting a layout of the place would be difficult. But Frisk had an idea. They got up and knocked at the door. After a second passed, it opened it little, the dark, beady eyes of the guard staring down at them.

“What is it, brat?” he demanded.

Frisk squeezed their legs together, hopping from foot to foot, pretending that they had to relieve themselves. The man rolled his eyes.

“Ugh,” he groaned. “Fine. C’mere.”

Frisk was roughly pulled outside, a blindfold tied over their eyes. The barrel of an assault riffle poked at their back.

“Go.”

With a rude push, Frisk was walking through the rest of the warehouse. They were led outside, the cool night air ruffling their hair. They were led around for about five minutes, until they caught the familiar, disgusting smell of a port-a-potty. Frisk was stopped, and heard the door open.

“Alright, get in,” the guard said. “And be quick about it.”

Frisk was practically thrown into the port-a-potty, the door slamming shut behind them. They quickly slipped off the blindfold, making sure not to untie it. They began nibbling a hole into the fabric, one big enough for them to see out of, but small enough that the guard wouldn’t notice it. They used the toilet (because, after all, if they didn’t go now, they probably wouldn’t be allowed to go later, when they really had to), slipped the blindfold back on, and exited the port-a-potty. They were greeted with the assault rifle’s barrel poking their back and a rough, “Move,” from the guard. Frisk obeyed, peeking out of the hole. They could see a bit of the layout surrounding the warehouse. There was a lot of land surrounding the building, the nearest street being about a hundred yards away. If Frisk did escape, they’d have to make quite the journey to get to the road, not to mention, their captors would, no doubt, be driving after them. And there was no telling how far away Frisk was from the nearest city or town. But, Frisk had hope they’d be able to pull it off. They’d attack tomorrow night; they needed time to think of a plan.

 

The morning sun beamed over a busy highway. Your cruiser drove down the road, back in the direction of Scott Bend. You had gone back home to get ready for the new day. Sans was in the passenger’s seat, his hoodie drawn and his eyesockets closed. You assumed he was asleep, but something in the back of your mind told you that maybe he wasn’t. Was something bothering him, you wondered. He seemed a bit gloomy when you arrived to pick him up. When you questioned him, he merely shrugged it off and told you a bad pun. It had distracted you then, but the concern was coming back to one. One thing you’d learned from knowing Sans was that he didn’t care to talk about himself. Finding out what was wrong with him wouldn’t be easy.

You were shaken from your thoughts when you felt an odd sensation in your chest. You had been feeling it ever since your monster friends used their magic on you, but at this moment, it was especially strong. The sensation continued to grow more and more intense. You grabbed your chest, breathing heavily. Beads of sweat ran down your forehead. You pulled over to the side of the rode, turning of the car. It was then that Sans’ eye sockets opened, the pinpricks staring at you.

“you ok, kid?” he asked nonchalantly.

“S-Something’s h-h-happening to me…” you choked. You began to feel a bit heavy, as if you could never get up, no matter how hard you wanted to. Sans watched you, his eyesockets widening. You looked at him nervously. “S-Sans…what’s going on!?”

Sans didn’t respond, but simply raised a hand, bringing it close to your chest. It glowed a blue aura, and something emerged from you. It looked like a red heart, similar to the one you saw during the healing process, with small blotches of white, blue, yellow and green on it. You stared at it, wide-eyed and slack-jawed.

“that’s your soul, bud,” Sans said. “i take it you’ve never seen it before, eh?”

You shook your head, completely dumbfounded. Sans couldn’t help but chuckle.

“careful. your eyes might pop outta your head at that rate.”

You laughed weakly. You moved your finger to touch it, only to realize that it moved when you did.

“My soul, huh…?” you whispered. “D-Do all human souls look like this?”

“not all of ‘em,” Sans explained. “sometimes they can come in different colors, but usually only one solid color.”

“So what’s wrong with my soul?”

“when me and the others used our magic on ya, we didn’t just use some magical healing spell. we all put just a little bit of our souls in ya. y’see, monster souls are where a monster’s attacking and defensive strength come from. we wanted to make sure ya don’t get put in the hospital again, so, we gave ya some more defense to keep ya goin’. but if alphys is right, more stuff’ll happen to you because of it.”

“…Like what?”

“i dunno,” Sans shrugged. “we’ll have to see. uh…i can drive the rest of the way if, uh, you’re not feelin’ well, buddo.”

“Thanks,” you said, giving him a small smile. 

“oh, yeah, and, uh…” Sans’ hand glowed again, and the blue aura surrounded your soul. You held up your hand.

“No, no,” you said, your cheeks growing a light shade of pink. “I…I kinda want to keep it out. I like looking at it.”

Sans let out a deep laugh, amusement glowing in his eyesockets. 

“alright, if that makes ya happy.”

You traded places with Sans, sitting in the passenger’s seat while he took the wheel. To be honest, it was kind of refreshing to sit back and let someone else drive for once. It was also nice to see Sans in a good mood again. The warm feeling you felt in the hospital returned to you, that feeling that told you everything would be alright, and that Sans would make sure you were ok. You stared at your soul, seeing the flecks of blue. Knowing Sans used blue-colored auras, you wouldn’t be surprised if some of the blue splotches belonged to him. 

As Sans drove into Scott Bend, he glanced to see you batting at the soul, your eyes glued to it as it moved around. His smile grew a bit bigger. You could be such a dork sometimes, and, to be completely honest, you were kind of a cute one at that. A light blue blush coated his cheeks; he was incredibly blunt with his thoughts, but for some reason, he couldn’t help but feel sheepish when it came to his thoughts about you. He then frowned; he hated when things like this happened. Every time he found a moment to enjoy himself, it was always ruined by the bad thoughts that never stopped plaguing him. He sighed.

“listen kid,” he began. “i, uh, i gotta tell ya somethin’.”

“Hmm?”

“when we get to the crazy couple’s house, you’re gonna see somethin’…somethin’ i don’t think you’re gonna like…”

“Like…?”

“the crazy couple’s dead.”

You stared at the skeleton, your mouth agape.

“Wh-What?” you questioned him in disbelief. 

“they’re dead,” he repeated. “i killed them before i took ya to the hospital. They were shootin’ at us, and, well, what else was i ‘sposed to do?”

You watched as the pain of guilt appeared on the skeleton’s face. You hesitated, but you reached out a hand, touching his shoulder comfortingly. Part of you was afraid. He was a killer, your subconscious was screaming at you. He was a monster that had no problem taking a life. You shoved those thoughts aside. It was clear he felt bad about it. He was a creature of morals, just like any human. You could tell he was the sort of guy who would only hurt someone if he absolutely had to.

“Sans,” you began gently. “It’s ok. I understand. You were only killing out of self-defense. Lots of people would’ve done the same.” Sans didn’t reply, the look of guilt still on his face. “…If you think I think you’re some crazy killer, I can assure you, I don’t.”

Sans glanced at you and let out a sad chuckle.

“thanks, kid,” he said. “but self-defense or not, i’m sure not all cops are as understandin’ as you. i have a feelin’ this come back to get me.” He paused, and then chuckled again, this one sounding somewhat happier. “then again, i never really cared about what could happen to me. i’m always more concerned about the folks i care about.” He locked eyes with you for a split second as he said those last few words. Your heart pounded in your chest, your soul mimicking the action and making it obvious how you were feeling. You hid it quickly in your hands; Sans didn’t seem to notice, either that, or he was being considerate and not bringing it up. You were pretty sure it was the latter. 

Your cruiser pulled up in front of the house. Sans looked past you; it looked exactly as it did when he left it. The bodies of the gun-sling couple were still there at the front door, their bodies impaled by the bone attacks. You stared at the gruesome scene, your eyes wide. You weren’t sure what you’d been expecting, but it wasn’t this. You never liked the idea of impalement; hell, it sent a shiver down your spine just thinking about it. Even if their deaths were purely out of self-defense, Sans’ powers frightened you. But there was nothing that could be done; you and Sans could only more forward from this, and that was what you planned to do. You looked to Sans. He was staring at his slippers. You touched his shoulder.

“Come on,” you said gently. “The most important thing is getting Frisk back.”

“yeah…” agreed Sans, looking up at you. “you’re right, bud. let’s go.”

You approached the front door. Sans waved his hand, the bones impaling the couple vanishing. He moved them aside with a magical aura and stood back while you began to search around. Something didn’t feel right about all this. He stared outside, his pinpricks scanning the neighborhood. Meanwhile, you were heading upstairs. You entered the master bedroom, seeing a jacket on the floor next to the bed. You picked it up, searching through the pockets. You found some keys on a key chain. Quickly, you returned downstairs, finding the entrance to the garage. When you entered, you felt your heart skip a beat. It was the van, the one used to take Frisk. The bones Sans used against it were still stuck to it. Slowly, you went to it, searching through the front seats. You found a crumpled piece of paper under the passenger’s seat. A messily written address was written on it. Your heart raced; could this be where Frisk was taken? Possibly. As you put it in your pocket, you heard Sans calling from the living room.

“kid,” he yelled. “i think we’ve got a problem.”

You returned to the living room. Sans was peeking out of the window. You joined him, seeing police cruisers surrounding the house, their owners standing near the open doors and aiming guns at the house.

“We have the place surrounded!” one of them shouted. “Come out with your hands up!”

“Shit,” you swore.

“i knew this would come back to get me,” Sans muttered. 

“Don’t worry,” you told him. “I’ll talk to them. I’ll see if I can make things better.” As you went to the front door, Sans let out a scoff. Your hopefulness reminded him of Papyrus. But if his knowledge of the Genocide timeline had taught him anything, it was that such hopefulness could be dangerous.

“be careful,” he murmured. “…please…”

You stepped outside, holding up your hands to show you were unarmed.

“Officers,” you began, being careful not to make any sudden movements. “What seems to be the problem?”

“We received an anonymous tip that a skeleton monster and their accomplice had come here and murdered the couple that lives here,” one of them explained. 

“Murder?” you repeated. “Oh, no, y-you’ve got it all wrong--”

“Oh, don’t even start,” you were rudely interrupted. “You’re disgusting. How could you, an officer of the law, help a monster kill humans, your own species, for fuck’s sake!?”

“I’m not turning against my species,” you snapped, anger filling you. Your soul, which was still floating in front of your chest, began to pulsate as the white flecks began to glow. You felt your hands, which were clenching into fists, heat up. “We did not come here to kill the homeowners,” you continued. “These horrible people kidnapped the Monster Ambassador and attacked us for trying to save them. How DARE you accuse me of betraying humans, you…you disgusting, bigoted idiots!”

There was a silence. The cops stared at you, their eyes glowing with surprise and…terror…? You noticed them staring at your fists. You looked down, and gasped. They were…on fire. Squeaking in panic, you shook your hands to rid them of the flames, but this only caused you to shoot balls of fire everywhere, causing the cops to duck for cover. You quickly froze, seeing that your freaking out was only making the situation worse. The other officers slowly recovered.

“Wh-What the hell was that!?” one of the stuttered.

“Are you even human!?” another demanded.

“Who cares what they are,” a third growled. “They attacked us. Show ‘em no mercy!”

You paled, hearing the cocking of multiple guns. 

You felt a familiar skeletal hand grab yours, and as your heard the deafening roar of the guns, you found yourself in your cruiser, Sans at the wheel. He drove off, the tires of the car screeching against the asphalt. In the rear view mirror, you could see the flashing lights of the pursuing cruisers. Sans sped through the neighborhood, making his way onto an open road. You could see beads of sweat running down the top of his skull. His eyesockets were shut tightly.

“c’mon,” he was muttering to himself. “c’mon, sansy, you can do this…”

You noticed that everything was growing a bluish tint outside the cruiser. The tint grew stronger, blocking your view of the outside, until, suddenly, it vanished. Your cruiser was no longer on the street, but rather, hidden in an alleyway in the city section of Scott Bend. Removing the keys from the ignition, Sans sat back, breathing heavily. He was drenched in sweat; it looked as if he’d pass out at any moment. 

“Oh my God,” you gasped, taking the skeleton’s hand. “Sans, are you ok!?”

Sans took a while to answer. His eyesockets slowly opened, and the white pinpricks looked in your direction. 

“he…he…” his laugh was deep, slow, and weary. “that…took a lot outta me…looks like you’ll have to…” He yawned. “…take it from here, kiddo.”

“Ok,” you replied. “But you need to get out of sight. You’ll be a dead giveaway if we come across those cops again. Hold on…”

You got out of the cruiser, making your way around to the driver’s seat. You opened the door, pulling Sans out. He didn’t resist, letting you carrying him to the back seat. You laid him out, slipping off his hoodie in an attempt to cool him down. You heard him let out a relieved sigh.

“Better?” you asked.

“much better,” replied Sans.

“Good,” you said, flashing him a smile. “Just hang out back here for a while, ok?”

Sans responded with a gentle snore, sleep already taking over his body. You returned to the driver’s seat, letting out a sigh. You were feeling a mixture of emotions: anger, frustration, fatigue, and fear. The search for Frisk would now be tougher now that you were being accused of murder. You felt the paper in your pocket and pulled it out, examining it. You read the address over and over, as if your life depended on it. You had to; this was what was going to lead you to Frisk, and you wouldn’t let anyone or anything get in your way. As you started up your cruiser and pulled out onto the open road, you were once again filled with determination. You were done wasting time; it was time to get Frisk back once and for all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thank everyone who's been supporting me these past few months. I promise I'll try to get more of this out for you. I may update a bit less often due to my desire to work on a personal writing project, but rest assured, I'm not abandoning this fanfiction.


	9. Chapter 9

You never did like motels. They were infested with bugs, the television only seemed to have the worst channels, and the walls were so thin that you could hear all the nasty business coming from the other rooms. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much you could do. You couldn’t go home and risk getting caught by the cops, not when you were so close to your goal. Besides, you and Sans needed a place to spend the night, and your cruiser didn’t sound very comfortable. 

You and Sans lied on the motel bed you’d be forced to share. The skeleton was still asleep, not bothering to wake up since the end of the chase earlier. You, on the other hand, were staring at the address you took from the kidnapping couple’s home. As you stared at the address, thoughts ran through your mind. Just before you arrived to the motel, you visited the location written on the paper. It was a bar, an awful, shady-looking one. No doubt, the bar had been a drop-off location. You didn’t do any thorough investigating, however. You were at risk of being caught during the daylight hours, that, and the shady folks attending the bar would most likely be put off by the fact that you were a cop. You were waiting until nightfall to return to the bar. You’d taken the liberty to buy yourself a civilian’s outfit in order to blend in with the bar patrons. If Sans was awake by then, you’d take him with you for backup. 

“mmm…” you heard the skeleton in question groan. “heh…c’mon papyrus…you’re smiling…”

You looked over at Sans, a smile appearing on your face; he was dreaming about Papyrus, and that was adorable. Interested, you decided to listen in on Sans’ sleep-talk.

“huh…?” Sans was mumbling. “you wanna do what, pap? no, that’s too dangerous…pap, don’t…”

You tilted your head. What could that mean? Was this something that had happened in the Underground, before the monsters were free?

“p-papyrus…papyrus, no…no…no…no…” tears squeezed themselves out of Sans’ closed eyesockets. “oh, god…oh, god, please!” The skeleton began to toss and turn, his phalanges gripping the bedsheets so tightly you feared he’d rip them. A wispy, blue flame forced itself out of one of Sans’ eyesockets, burning away the tears. You stared, absolutely terrified.

“Oh my God…” you whispered, quivering. You reached out a shivering hand, touching his humerus bone. “S-Sans? Sans, wake up. Wake up, please!”

Sans jolted awake, torso springing upright. Despite his lack of lungs, he was breathing heavily, taking in gulps of air. One of his eyesockets was empty, and the other continued to emit the blue flame. He looked around, unsure of where he was. He looked at you, and for a split second, he forgot who you were. He reached out, cupping your face in his hands. 

“pap?” he whispered, his voice cracking. You slowly shook your head.

“N-No…” you replied. “Sans, it’s me.”

As the skeleton came to his senses, the wispy flames dissipated, and his pinpricks returned. He removed his quivering hands.

“oh,” he said. “o-oh, yeah…s-sorry, kiddo…”

“Are you ok? You looked like you were having a nightmare.”

“y-yeah, i’m fine.”

“Sans…”

Sans laughed weakly, his smile strained, and his brow furrowed. The laugh slowly died away, being replaced with a sigh.

“alright, kid,” he said. “you got me. i was havin’ a nightmare.”

“What about?” you asked. “We can talk about it if you want.”

“nah,” Sans said quickly. “i’m fine, trust me.”

“You didn’t look fine to me,” you said. Sans tore his gaze away from you, only for you to place a hand on his cheekbone, pulling his face towards you. You smiled warmly at him. “Sans, we’re friends. If I can trust you to understand my problems, you can trust me to understand yours. I care about you, Sans.” You felt your cheeks heat up, and Sans gained a blue blush on his cheeks. “I don’t want to let you suffer alone.”

“kid,” Sans began. “there’s a lot of things ya don’t know about me. i know things that only few monsters do…things out of my control…things that make it hard for me to give it my all.”

“What do you mean?” you asked. 

“kiddo, would you believe me if i told ya that this moment in time that we’re livin’ in now, was a part of one of many timelines?”

“Wh-What?”

“it’s kinda hard to explain, so, bear with me, alright? there are many timelines, all of ‘em depending on the one who has the power to SAVE. The one who can SAVE can chose to kill, to spare, to pick and choose who will live and who will die. at this very moment, they could erase this world. you would be livin’ your normal life, before ya met any of us, and we monsters would be back in the underground, at their mercy. the cycle repeats as many times as the one with SAVE power wants. nothing changes; if it did, the anomaly could destroy the universe as we know it.” Sans closed his eyes, pausing for a moment. “my nightmare was about a certain timeline. i call it, “genocide”. papyrus…he was gonna fight frisk, back underground when we were tryin’ to get to the surface. he was…” Sans began to choke up once again. “h-he was killed in one shot.”

You stared at Sans, terrified.

“He’s d-died before?”

“yeah…and there was nothin’ i could do about it, except join him. things are better in this timeline; frisk has control of it, and promised me they wouldn’t reset. I never have to worry about it happenin’ again. but it still haunts my dreams, that and…other things. but…i’ll talk about those things in time.”

“I understand,” you said. “Come here, buddy.” You wrapped your arms around Sans, pulling him into a comforting hug. You felt his arms carefully wrap around your back. It felt…nice. Like, this was where you belonged, enveloped in Sans’ arms. Your head tipped down slightly, your lips grazing against the top of his skull.

“huh?” Sans gasped, pulling away and staring up at you. Blue covered his cheekbones, and he looked genuinely dumbfounded. Your cheeks were practically on fire. 

“Er…sorry,” you murmured. “M-My bad.” Sans slowly smiled at you.

“don’t worry about it, bud. it felt kinda nice. wouldn’t mind bein’ kissed more often.”

“Tsk,” you scoffed, playfully shoving Sans. “Bonehead.” Sans shoved you back.

“dork.”

“Numbskull.”

“goofball.” Sans’ push was a it rougher this time. You felt yourself teetering over the side of the bed. With a panicked yelp, you grabbed for Sans’ arm, dragging him with you as you fell to the floor. He landed on top of you, straddling your waist, his hands near the sides of your head. You stared into each other’s eyes, stunned at what just happened. After what seemed like an eternity, Sans let out a somewhat nervous laugh.

“welp. that just happened.”

“Yeah…” you whispered in reply. Sans stood, helping you up. “Thanks.”

“no prob.”

You both stood there, awkwardly fidgeting. You rubbed the back of your neck, while Sans stared at his slippers.

“So, uh,” you finally began. “You want to watch some TV?”

“yeah, sure.”

So, for the next few hours, you and Sans did just that. You watched an old rerun of “Paging Dr. Lovebot” on that crappy motel TV. You tried your hardest to focus on the sexy robot doctor onscreen, but all you could care about was the feelings deep inside you, the feelings Sans was making you feel. Out of the corner of your eye, you could seem him watching you. Could he be feeling the same? You weren’t entirely sure; Sans was a very mysterious fellow. The thought was pretty silly, though. It had only been a few weeks. Surely, you couldn’t be falling for a skeleton after knowing him for a few weeks? That was just impossible…wasn’t it? And if Sans meant what he said about the timelines, even if there was a chance…you stopped there. You didn’t want to think about it.

 

Night had finally come. You and Sans were sitting in your cruiser, the darkness of night hiding it from view. Around the block was the bar. You wore your civilian’s outfit, but your pistol was hidden in your pocket, and the magic embedded in your soul still lingered. Your soul had been put back in your chest, but you could feel it buzzing within you, the excitement and fear getting to you. You looked to Sans. He didn’t seem to be nervous at all; how you envied him. 

“Ready?” you asked him.

“yup,” he replied. With that, you both emerged from the cruiser, making your way to the bar. The bar’s sign hummed as its fluorescent lights cut through the inky blackness of night. There was a ripe smell of tobacco, whisky, and vomit. Dark figures lingered near the entrance, smoking cigars and eyeing you both. You noticed their glares were mainly directed at Sans. One of them approached you, a muscular man covered in tattoos. He pulled the cigar from his mouth, blowing the foul fumes in your face.

“You need to turn around and go back where you came from,” he told you. “This place doesn’t serve folks like you two.”

“That’s fine,” you replied coolly. “We know a place much better than this trash heap. Besides, we’re not here for drinks. We’re here for answers. A van came here a few days ago, driven by a man and his wife. They had a child with them, didn’t they?”

“What makes you think I know the answer to that?” the man spat. You sensed others surrounding you. Sans’s hand reached for yours, but it stopped when you heard the cock of a gun. The man now aimed a gun at your head. “Watch it,” he warned. “Keep still, or you’re both dead. Heh…I’ve heard about you both. You’re looking for the Ambassador. Well, I ain’t letting that happen. Rot in hell, monster-lover.”

POW!

Your hand shot out, grabbing the man. Your soul involuntarily jumped out of your chest, the green flecks glowing. The man’s soul also appeared. It was black for a few seconds, but suddenly turned green. The man was frozen in place, and, lucky for you, the bullet in his gun was stopped. Behind you, you heard a low, droning sound. You dared to look over your shoulder, and saw Sans, accompanied by a few large, floating, draconic-looking skulls. They were aimed at the men that came behind you, their mouths agape and ready to fire. The men, terrified at the sight, dropped their weapons, backing away.

“oh, no ya don’t.” More of the draconic skulls appeared behind them. “you guys ain’t going nowhere ‘til we get answers.”

“Don’t say nothin’!” one of them ordered the rest. “We’re not lettin’ these freaks stay on the surface!” He was immediately blasted in the chest, his body being sent flying backwards. He landed with a rough thud on the pavement. While the blow didn’t kill him, it slowly chipped away at his health, a special feature that added to an otherwise weak attack. As he lay convulsing in pain, Sans turned his gaze to the other men, his pupils gone.

“well?” he began. “i don’t like repeatin’ myself. one of ya better talk now, or else, you’re all gonna have a bad time.”

“I…I saw the kid!” a terrified man shouted, tears pouring out of his eyes. 

“who picked ‘em up?” demanded Sans.

“I-It was some big guy in a jeep. He knocked the kid out and took him away.”

“where?”

“I don’t know for sure. I swear, I don’t! Rumor has it the M.R.C.’s base is an old warehouse up north, leaving town.”

Sans looked at you. “what do ya think?”

“Sounds like we’d better pay this warehouse a visit,” you said. “Thank you Sans. You can let them go.”

“sure thing,” replied Sans. “and to make sure none of ya follow us or anythin’…” The Gasterblasters went off, each blasting them men, leaving them injured on the ground. You stepped aside, no longer having the barrel of a pistol to your head. You moved your hand away, unfreezing the man. The gun went off, harming no one. As the thunderous crack of the gun echoed in the air, you brought down the butt of your pistol on the man’s head, knocking him unconscious. You touched your soul, gently pushing it back inside your chest.

“Thanks, guys,” you whispered. You owed so much to your monster friends. Had it not been for them, you would’ve been long since dead by now. You turned to Sans. “Come on. Let’s finish this.”

 

The door opened to Frisk’s room, causing the child to squint at the sudden light. The guard stepped in, holding what could barely be called “dinner” in his hands. He tossed the plate on the ground, carelessly letting its contents hit the floor. Frisk didn’t care; if they could pull this off; they wouldn’t have to worry about eating any of it. The child stood, approaching the man. The guard watched them, confusion etched onto his face. He aimed his gun at them.

“What the hell are you doing, kid?” he demanded. “Back up, or I’ll end you myself.”

Frisk refused. Around them, things seemed to be getting dark, and their soul emerged from their chest. It was time for a battle. Frisk decided to “check” him first. The man had 100 attack and 100 defense, stronger than even Asgore or Toriel. Understandable, as humans were the stronger species. Frisk also learned that the man worked night-shifts watching them, meaning he was very cranky and tired all the time. Frisk knew what needed to be done. Taking a deep breath, they began to sing the song of Shyren. The guard stared at you, baffled. 

“What the hell…?” he murmured. He suddenly felt a warm feeling wash over him. What was it, he wondered, and more importantly, why was he feeling so sleepy…? He shook his head. No, he wouldn’t let some brat get the better of him. It was his turn to attack. He aimed the butt of the gun at Frisk’s head, bringing it down on them a few times. Every time, it was dodged. Frisk went again, continuing Shyren’s song. Again, the man was filled with warmth. Memories of his youth flashed before his eyes. He remembered his mother, and the many lullabies she sang to him before he drifted off to a land of hopes and dreams. The man’s eyes closed, s smile forming on his face. He swayed back and forth to Frisk’s song, getting onto his knees, and then onto his stomach. He began snoring a few moments later.

Congratulating themselves for their victory, Frisk tip-toed out of the room. They peeked around the open door, seeing the rest of the warehouse. It was, for the most part, empty, aside from the chair Frisk had been strapped to before, and the recording equipment. Fiddling with the equipment was the M.R.C.’s leader. It seemed that it was time for another video to be made in order to scare the monsters into returning to the Underground. The kid swallowed; if that was the case, he’d be coming over to bring them out at any moment. Quietly, Frisk shut the door to their prison, locking it. Quietly, they sneaked into the main area of the warehouse. The warehouse was of poor quality, possibly being a few decades old. Because of this, the lighting wasn’t very good, leaving lots of dark areas for Frisk to hide in. Now, if they could just make it to the warehouse entrance. Slowly and silently, Frisk tiptoed along the warehouse wall, watching the leader of the M.R.C. to make sure he didn’t notice them. The seconds became minutes as the door grew closer and closer. Frisk reached the end of the wall. The entrance was right there, but, they could get to it. A light hung over it. Even if they were quick, the M.R.C. leader could spot them. They would have to wait.

“Finally,” the M.R.C. leader said, his voice echoing. “Now to get the brat…” He began walking to the room he believed Frisk to be trapped in. Frisk’s heart raced; now was their chance! While the man wasn’t looking, they rushed to the entrance, opening it and rushing out. They were blasted by the cool night air. Using the light of the moon, Frisk could see the vast grassland surrounding the warehouse, and the street far beyond it. Without thinking, they began to run as fast as they could into the tall grass, heading for the road. Behind, he heard voices.

“The brat’s gone!”

“Find them, quick!”

“Don’t let ‘em get away!”

This was followed by the sound of starting engines. Frisk looked over their shoulder; it was just as they feared. The sentry guards had been alerted of their disappearance, and were now chasing them down in their vehicles. The vehicles went in different directions, two of them headed after Frisk. Frisk dived to the ground, letting themselves be hidden in it. The ground shook beneath them as SUVs and vans drove around them, searching for them with bright white headlights. Slowly, they crawled in the direction of the street. If they could just make it there without getting caught, everything would be fine, they just knew it. Suddenly, the headlight fell on the child, causing them to freeze.

“There they are!”

Frisk looked back, seeing a Jeep driving towards them. The left rear door opened, a man reaching out to grab them. Frisk scrambled to their feet and ran. The roar of the Jeep’s engine grew louder and louder as it got closer. Frisk’s vision began to blur, tears collecting in their eyes. It seemed that it was over, that their attempt had been for nothing. Suddenly:

POW!

Frisk threw themselves to the ground. There was the shattering of glass and the screech of brakes. Daring to look back at the Jeep, Frisk saw that its windshield had been shot out, and the men inside had ducked for cover. Frisk them looked to the street. A great smile appeared on their face at the sight of a familiar-looking police cruiser. You were standing outside of the car, your gun aimed at the Jeep. The kid scrambled to their feet, exposing themselves and calling out to you. When you saw them, your mouth fell open, a look of shock on your face.

“F-Frisk…” you gasped.

The child began to run towards your cruiser, but the men in the Jeep, now having recovered from your warning shot, were back up, their weapons drawn. One of them fired a shot at Frisk.

“Don’t even think about it, brat,” he hissed. “You’re not goin’ nowhere.”

Meanwhile, you cursed under your breath. 

“Fucking bastards,” you swore. You called to Sans. “Looks like it’s up to you.”

“not a problem.”

Sans was suddenly standing in front of Frisk. At the same time, a shield of bones shot out of the ground. The men shot their guns, but they only bounced harmlessly off the bone shield. Wrapping his arms around the child, Sans returned to the cruiser as quickly as he left. You jumped into the driver’s seat, and sped off. You thought your heart would explode from how fast it was going. You’d done it; Frisk was saved. Monsters no longer had to fear that their Ambassador would be assassinated. But this wasn’t over yet. In the rear-view mirror, you saw the Jeep, as well as other cars driven by M.R.C. members, following after your cruiser. Some of them were driving faster than others, and were beginning to flank your cruiser. Guns were drawn, aiming for your windows.

POW!

POW!

Glass shattered everywhere. A shard grazed your cheek and drew blood. Your cruiser began to lose control as you moved to avoid being hit with the bullet. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Sans ducking down, his body acting as a shield for the child. 

POW!

POP!

You felt yourself jolt violently. Checking your side-view mirror, you could see that your rear tire had been shot out. With another deafening gunshot, you jolted again. Another tire had been shot. Your cruiser was slowing down rapidly, going slower and slower until, finally, it stopped. The pursuing cars circled the cruiser. You looked around, eyes wide in terror. There was no escape; it was over.

An SUV parked in front of your cruiser. Emerging from it was a man surrounded by a few others, who were armed. You stared up at the man, wishing at that moment, you could just drop dead. It was him: your stepfather. He stepped forward, laughing mockingly and clapping slowly.

“Bravo,” he began, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Bravo. What an AMAZING performance. To be honest, you had me worried for a moment. But I guess there was no reason to be.” He nodded to his men. “Take the brat and my step-kid, but kill the monster.”

You didn’t have time to react when the door to the driver’s seat was thrown open. Muscular arms reached in, grabbing you and dragging you out. You struggled desperately, but they were much too strong for you. 

“Sans!” you cried. “Take Frisk and get out of here! Please!”

Sans hesitated, sweat forming on the crown of his skull.

“kid, i can’t leave ya behind!” he protested.

“Don’t argue with me,” you snapped, not out of anger, but out of fear and concern. “Do it! Do it now!”

Sans looked to Frisk, and then looked back at you. You could see the horror glistening in his eyesockets. Finally, he closed his eyes, and suddenly vanished with Frisk. 

“What!?” your step-father exclaimed. “No! Where’d they go!?”

“Back home,” you spat at the man. “Where they’ll be safe from you.”

Your step-father glowered at you, the intensity of it forcing you to look away. The fear you felt for him all your childhood had returned; he was now in control of you. Hearing footsteps, you flinched as a hand grabbed your chin, forcing you to look your step-father in the face.

“Heh…” he laughed sinisterly. “Still causing trouble for me after all these years, I see. How annoying. But…maybe you could be of some use to me. You may be an obnoxious little pest, but I’ve always had fun using you as my little toy.” 

“I-I’ll never do anything for you,” you said, although you didn’t sound very convincing. Your step-father laughed.

“Is that so?” he replied. “Well, then. We’ll see.” He nodded to his men again. You heard a “TWACK!” and felt a sharp pain in the back of your head. Your vision began to fade, and you fell limp. The last thing you saw before everything went back was the cold, sadistic smirk you were so used to seeing.

 

Frisk felt Sans loosen his grip on them. As they pulled away, they noticed that they were both sitting on a mattress in a motel room. The looked up at Sans. The skeleton was looking down, a look of devastation on his face. Gingerly, they reached out and touched his arm, quietly asking if he was alright. Sans slowly turned to look at the child, forcing a smile on his face.

“fine, kid,” he lied. “just fine. here.” Sans pulled his cellphone from his pocket, giving it to Frisk. “there’s someone who’s gonna wanna hear from you again.”

Although Frisk was initially skeptical toward Sans, the thought of talking to Toriel again caused them to momentarily forget it. They dialed Toriel’s number, bouncing slightly as they waited for her to pick up. 

“Hello, this is Toriel,” Sans could hear Toriel’s voice. “…F-Frisk? Oh my God…Frisk, is that really you? Oh, my child, thank God you are safe! Oh, I cannot wait to see you home again! …What was that? Sans would like to talk to me? Oh, that is fine. Goodbye, my dear. I love you very much.”

Frisk passed the phone over to Sans. Sans hadn’t actually wanted to talk, but, it seemed he had no choice.

“hey, tori,” he greeted.

“Hello, Sans,” Toriel replied. “I am so, so happy you and ____ found Frisk. Are you all coming back now?”

“not quite,” the skeleton admitted. “____’s been captured by the guys that took frisk.”

“What!?”

“yeah. i had no choice but to get away with frisk; it was the only way to get ‘em to safety. but i need to go back for ____.”

“Say no more,” Toriel said. “I shall call Asgore and the others. We are coming to help you.”

“tori, i can’t ask you guys to—“

“Hush now. I know you care a lot about them.” Sans felt himself heating up. “But we also care about ____. We will all help, as they have helped us. Tell us where you are, and we’ll come.”

“alright, but could you come in the morning? i think frisk could use some rest. kid’s been without a bed in days.”

“That is fine. Goodnight, Sans.”

“night, tori.”

Click…


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm putting this note at the beginning of this chapter as a warning. This chapter is extremely dark due to it's inclusion of a rape scene (nothing too graphic, but it's there). Skip to a bit later for something a bit tamer. However, I'm going to have to change the rating due to this.

One of the worst things about being knocked unconscious was the headache that followed immediately after waking up. You were experiencing that first hand, a groan escaping your lips as you rubbed the tender spot on your head. Your vision was blurry, and your body refused to move. You felt hands touching you, going through your pockets and patting you down.

“Wha…” you managed to gasp. “Wh-Where am I?”

“They’re awake,” a familiar voice responded. John. “Someone go get Raymond.”

You heard footsteps leaving the area. Shaking your head and rapidly blinking your eyes, you managed to clear up your vision faster. You were in some strange room you only could only assume had been used to keep Frisk prisoner. As you suspected, John was kneeling over you, searching your body. Your belt, which carried your equipment, was slung over his arm. You glared daggers at him.

“You?!” you snapped.

“Shut it,” John replied, returning the glare. “You should’ve just left it alone. You could’ve been at home right now, away from all this, but no. You chose to care about those freaks. Now, you’ll suffer with them.”

With a fierce growl, you moved to swing your fist at the man, only to find that your arms were tied behind your back. You were completely at the mercy of your captors. John laughed mockingly.

“Nice try. We’ll see how tough you are when Raymond’s done with you. I heard he’s got something nice planned for you.”

As much as you wanted to deny John the pleasure of seeing you afraid, you couldn’t help but start shivering at the thought. Flashbacks of the past flickered in your mind, making the uncontrollable trembling more and more obvious. John cocked a brow interestedly.

“Wow,” he remarked, genuinely impressed. “You really are scared shitless of him.” A sadistic smirk formed on his face. “That should make this even more entertaining.”

You wanted to swear, you wanted to fight, you wanted to do escape, but you just couldn’t. You were stuck there, and the demon of your nightmares was coming to do whatever he wished with you. You bowed your head, unable to look John in the face. Tears forced themselves down your cheeks.

“My, my, what have we here?”

You froze. Oh, God, no, you thought. Your stepfather, Raymond, slowly walked into the room, his shadow falling over you. Getting on one knee in front of you, he reached out with a hand and tilted up your head. You could hardly breathe, your eyes widening in terror as you looked into the face of the Devil himself. He smiled hungrily at you, enjoyment flashing in his eyes. Without tearing his gaze from you, he addressed John.

“Close the door,” he ordered. With a nod, John got up, closing the room’s door. He then stood in the corner, arms folded, watching intensely at the scene.

“I took all their weapons,” he reported. “I couldn’t really do anything about the monster magic they’ve got, though.”

“That’s fine,” responded Raymond. “I’ve done my research. Monsters are far weaker than us humans, and their power’s weakened when they don’t have the will to fight.” He addressed you this time. “Attack me all you want. That shit won’t kill me; I know you don’t have the balls to do it.”

Wanting him to eat his words, you attacked him. Your soul emerged from your chest, the yellow flecks glowing. It began to shoot small yellow bullets. They hit Raymond’s chest before falling pitifully to the floor. The man laughed.

“That’s the best you can do?” he scoffed. “That was nothing. You’re weak. You’re pathetic. You’re hopeless!” He swung at your soul, hitting it roughly with his fist. A fiery pain shot through you, causing you to cry out in agony. You fell over, writhing in pain, your tears pooling on the floor next to your head. Your stepfather’s weight fell upon you, pinning you down. You felt his hand toy with your pants, undoing the button, unzipping the zipper, tugging them down…

“No!” you cried, squirming against him. “No! Stop! Please!”

“You don’t want this?” your stepfather asked, his voice low and guttural. “That’s fine. But in exchange for the blue balls you’ve just given me, you’ll need to get Frisk and bring them back to me.”

“What?” you said in shock. “N-No! I can’t! I-I won’t!”

“Alright then.” He continued to pull down your hands, and you continued to fight against him. Your underwear was forced off next. You cringed as you heard him remove his own pants and position himself over you. “This is your last chance,” he told you. “Give in to my demands, or…” He paused, his tongue running against your ear lobe. “You’re gonna get it. What’s it gonna be? And be quick about it; I don’t like waiting.”

“N-No…” you whispered; it was all you could say. You didn’t know what else to do. You didn’t want this, not again. But you didn’t want Frisk to come back here. They didn’t deserve it, and neither did the monsters. 

“Time’s up,” Raymond brought you out of your thoughts, causing your blood to run cold.

“Wait! Wait, no! Wait! AHH!”

Your screams echoed in the small room as Raymond forced himself into you. Searing hot pain shot through your body with each thrust. He bit down on your neck, grunting like a wild, sex-driven animal as he reminded you why he would always have power over you. You had no choice but to take it. Your vision blurred as a new batch of tears replaced the old ones. The familiar scent of sex and blood filled the air as Raymond thrust harder and faster. 

“Please….” You begged. “Sto-o-o-o-p…”

“Will you do what I want?” asked Raymond. You couldn’t respond. “Fine. I can keep this up all day if I want. You’ll break eventually; I’ll fuck the determination right out of you.” He started up again, resuming your crying, screaming, and begging. 

Meanwhile, in the corner, John’s eyes were fell to the floor, unable to watch anymore. He just couldn’t understand it; he thought this was what he had wanted. He thought he had wanted to see you suffer like this. But…he just couldn’t watch it. Deep within his soul, he still felt the feeling he once felt for you, the feeling that drove him to want to start a relationship with you in the first place.

“Boss,” he found himself saying. This caused the act to stop, Raymond looking over at him, slightly annoyed.

“What?” he demanded.

“A-Are you sure this is the best way to get them to break?” asked John as he fidgeted uncomfortably.

“Of course it is,” replied Raymond. “I know my step-kid. It worked all the time when they were younger.” John could help but feel sick to his stomach at such a confession. It didn’t matter how he felt about you or anyone. No one deserved this. No one.

“Boss, I-I don’t think--”

“If you have a problem with my methods, you can leave.”

The officer’s mouth fell open, preparing to say something back, but he stopped himself. It wouldn’t make a difference what he said. Raymond knew you a lot more than he did. Sighing, John left the room, just as Raymond continued your torture. He picked up his speed, wanting to get away from your screams as quick as he could. He walked through the warehouse and made his way outside. The sick feeling bubbled within him, and he rushed to the port-a-potty, where he locked himself inside and began to vomit.

 

Sans’ eyesockets snapped open, his pinpricks gone and sweat trickling down his skull. His breathing was heavy and rugged, and within his ribcage, his soul pulsated rapidly in his moment of panic. He heard a small voice asking him if he was alright. Propping himself up on his elbow, he looked to see Frisk, sitting in front of the muted television, staring up at him. Sans smiled weakly.

“yeah, kiddo,” he lied. “i’m good, honestly.” Frisk told him that they didn’t believe them. “c’mon, buddy, don’t be like that. would your uncle sansy lie to ya?” The look of suspicion on Frisk’s face remained unaltered. Sans sighed; it appeared he was losing his ability to hide his emotions from people. “guess i can’t pull the wool over your eyes, huh? fine. i’m worried about ____. a lot.”

Frisk gave Sans a reassuring smile, ensuring him that, with the help of all their friends, they’d bring you home, safe and sound. Sans laughed bitterly; he knew you could be rescued. It was what was being done to you he was afraid of. Still, Frisk cared enough to try and make him feel better, so, it didn’t hurt to be a little hopeful. Sans smiled sadly at the child.

“heh…thanks, kid,” he said.

Sans squinted as something shiny glistened outside the motel window. Getting out of bed and walking over to it, he could see that Papyrus’ red car pulling into the motel’s parking lot. 

“hey,” he called over to Frisk. “looks like there’s some folks here to see ya.”

Teleporting them both outside, Sans and Frisk walked to the red car as the monsters inside got out. Frisk gasped as they saw Toriel emerge from the back seat, and sprinted over to her, calling out to her. Toriel snapped her head in the direction of Frisk’s voice, and, upon seeing them, bent down, her arms outstretched. Frisk threw himself into her loving embrace, hugging her as if their life depended on it.

“Oh, Frisk, my beautiful child,” sobbed Toriel, tears of joy and relief running down her cheeks. “I thought I would never see you again. I missed you so much, sweet one.”

The others followed in Toriel’s footsteps, joining the hug and thanking God that Frisk had been returned to them alive. Sans watched the group hug from afar, a tiny smile on his face. He then looked away, the smile fading. He was just as happy as the other monsters that Frisk was free from the M.R.C.’s clutches, but it didn’t erase the fear he felt for you, and the resentment he felt for himself for leaving you behind. 

“Sans?” a low voice said next to him. Looking up, Sans saw Asgore standing at his side, looking down at him with concern. 

“hey, asgore,” greeted Sans. “what are you doin’ over here? All the action’s that way.” He pointed back to Frisk, Toriel and the others.

“I cannot ignore someone who’s hurting,” Asgore replied. “Please, Sans, understand that none of this is your fault.”

“i know, i know,” said Sans. “but…it’s just that…nah, nevermind. ignore me; i’m just bein’ paranoid.”

Asgore smiled politely. “Fear not. Everything will be fine. We will find ____, go home, and celebrate with butterscotch pie and tea. Doesn’t that sound delightful?”

“yeah, it does.”

“Good. Come now. Every second we remain here, is a second ____ remains imprisoned.”

“right.” 

 

Raymond backed away from you, zipping up his pants. He wiped sweat from his brow, breathing heavily as he recovered from his climax. Feeling the weight lifting itself off you, your squeezed your legs together, as if it would preserve whatever dignity you had left. Sharp, fiery pain shot through your entire body, and you felt nauseous. How long he’d been using your body, you weren’t sure, but it felt like an eternity. Raymond stared down at your miserable body, chuckling.

“So tell me,” he began. “Would you like to reconsider?” You could only stare at him. You had been screaming so much, that it hurt to swallow, let alone talk. He chuckled again.

“Alright, then.” He turned on his heel, walking to the room’s door. “I’ll be back in a bit for Round 2. If I hear you’ve been good while I’m away, I may even give you a treat.” With another cruel laugh, Raymond left you alone. He made his way outside the warehouse, calling for one of his guards to pull his car around front. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see John leaning against the wall of the warehouse, staring at him. Raymond turned to him, flashing him a satisfied smile, seemingly having forgotten their previous disagreement. “Hey,” he said. “Do me a favor and watch my step-kid. I’ll be back later.” 

“Yeah…” murmured John, looking away from him. He listened as the car pulled up, Raymond got in, and the car drove off in the direction of the street. John let out a sigh, going inside. His heart was racing as he neared your room. He stood staring at the door, thoughts of you racing in his mind. Had you told him where Frisk was? Had you remained strong despite what was happening to you? John felt his hand nearing the door handle, his curiosity getting the better of him. With an eerie creak, it opened. John peered in, seeing you lying still on the floor. He held a hand to his nose, emitting a sound of disgust. The smell…it was putrid! You were quivering like a scared little puppy dog, moaning and whimpering in pain. John slowly entered, the horrid feeling returning to him. This time, however, John didn’t feel like throwin up. Instead, he was feeling…guilty. 

Hearing John come in, you opened your eyes, staring up at him. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t meet your eyes.

“What do you want?” you questioned him with a soft, frail voice.

“Guard duty,” was his reply. He casually leaned against the wall. “What, you thought I was here to gloat or something?”

“Kind of,” you whispered. John opened his mouth, preparing to say that he had wanted to gloat, to mock your pain, to rub it in your face.

“No, I wouldn’t do that. Not after…” John fidgeted awkwardly. “Not after that. I’ve got to have some standards, y’know.”

For a while, there was silence. You continued to watch John, and he continued to avoid eye contact with you. Just then, John spoke again.

“Why?” he asked you. “Why do you care about them so much? Just…Just look at what they’ve just caused you.”

Your eyes narrowed. “Don’t blame them for this,” you said angrily. “They didn’t cause this. It was him…my stepdad. He’s done this kind of shit long before the monsters came to the surface. You have no right to say that about them.”

“Alright, alright,” John said. “I won’t blame them. But answer my question.”

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m doing what every police officer should do: I’m protecting them.”

“They don’t need it.”

“Yes they do, John.” You managed to find the strength to sit up getting a better angle to look at the man. “Just because they have magic, that doesn’t mean they’re immune from pain. I’ve seen the stories…I’ve seen the bodies…They need someone, and I’m all they’ve got. I don’t get why you can’t see that.”

“They’ve started a war with us. It won’t be long before they start another one.”

“We’ve killed hundreds of them,” you retorted. “They couldn’t even kill one of us. Just because they’re different from us, it doesn’t mean they’ll hurt you. They don’t want to hurt anyone, John. Hell, all the time I’ve been spending with monsters, they’ve hurt me a hell of a lot less than the humans I’ve met.”

John didn’t reply. You stayed silent; you knew you couldn’t change his mind in a few minutes, but you knew he knew you were right. You watched as the hard stare he directed at the floor softened, and he sighed, his eyes closing. He suddenly sat down, his hands covering his face.

“The things you do to me…” he muttered under his breath. “How can you make me like you one minute, want you dead the next minute, and then feel bad for you?”

“It’s called “emotions”. Maybe you should try having them more often.” You noticed the corners of John’s mouth twitched ever so slightly.

“Very funny,” he scoffed. “…Here…” John crawled over to you, grabbed your pants and underwear, and pulled them up (a bit roughly, but it’s the thought that counts). 

“Thanks,” you murmured.

“Yeah…” replied John, clearing his throat. You locked eyes for a split second, before he looked away. You thought you could see a light pink hue on his cheeks.

 

“Look,” Asgore began, pointing out of the passenger’s seat window. “A warehouse. Sans, does it look familiar to you?”

Sans looked over his shoulder, seeing the warehouse. He felt his soul begin to race. “that’s it. that’s where ____ is. pap, stop the car.”

Papyrus obliged, pulling over on the side of the road.

“So, what do we do?” asked Undyne. “Go in and beat up some fools?” She punched her hand with a fist.

“N-No,” Alphys said. “Th-That’s risky. W-We need a p-plan. Sans, were there guards there?”

“lots of ‘em,” replied Sans.

“Alright,” Alphys rubbed her chin with a claw. “W-W-We’ll need to distract them with a d-diversion. I-I can do that.”

“OH!” Papyrus cried. “LET ME BE THE DIVERSION ALSO! THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS AN EXPERT AT DIVERSIONS!”

“I guess I’ll help too,” Undyne said. “Don’t want my girl and my best buddy getting hurt.”

“i’m goin’ in to get ____” Sans announced.

“I will go with you,” said Toriel. 

“As will I,” added Asgore.

Frisk offered to come as well, but Toriel wouldn’t allow it.

“No, my child,” she said. “You have only just been freed from this place. I could not bear to see you taken once again.”

“I can watch over them,” offered Asgore. 

“Are you sure? I would feel much happier if Frisk stayed in the car…”

“I promise you, Tori. I won’t let Frisk be taken. I’ll protect them with my life.”

Toriel hesitated, but eventually gave in, shoving her own fears aside. Asgore knew how to handle children, probably even more so than herself. “Alright. But please, do not let them be captured.”

With that, everyone emerged from the car. Asgore picked Frisk up, conjuring a fireball to throw at anyone who dared to approach him. Papyrus, Alphys, and Undyne went ahead, entering the grass and running in the direction of the warehouse.

“Hey, punks!” Undyne shouted suddenly, conjuring a spear in her hand. “Come and get us!” She tossed it with the strength of an Olympic javelin thrower, causing it to land just inches away from the patrolling guards. 

“What the hell!?” one of them cried.

“Monster fucks,” spat another. “Kill ‘em! Don’t let a single one of ‘em get close!”

Gunfire rang out as the guards shot at the monsters. The returning fire consisted of bones, spears, and lightning bolts. Unlike the humans, Papyrus, Undyne and Alphys were not aiming to kill, only to distract, as Sans, Toriel, Asgore, and Frisk snuck around the battle. If there was any moment Sans regretted his lazy lifestyle, it was now. He couldn’t teleport them all; like with your cruiser, it would take nearly all of the little energy he had, and he refused to drain himself before saving you. Finally, they arrived at the entrance, sneaking inside as the war continued behind them.

Inside your room, you and John looked up, listening to the gunfire. John’s hand reached down for his gun as footsteps grew louder and louder outside of the door. It suddenly opened, and Sans, Toriel, Asgore, and Frisk entered. John aimed his pistol at Sans, and Sans immediately aimed a Gasterblaster back at John. Everyone was deathly still. Your eyes flickered between Sans and John, your heart racing as you waited to see who would shoot first. Hesitantly, John lowered his weapon, dropping it to the floor. Sans kicked it away, for safety’s sake. Satisfied, the skeleton walked over to you, untying your hands.

“you ok, kid?” he asked you, giving you a forced smile. You gazed into his eyesockets, feeling your eyes sting again.

“Sans…” you began. “My stepdad…he…he…” You clutched Sans’ hoodie, your body shivering. It didn’t take Sans long to put two and two together, and his mouth fell open ever-so-slightly.

“bud…” He took your hand, helping you up. Pain shot through your legs, and you yelped as you staggered. Sans was quick to catch you. “asgore, i could use your help here.”

Without needing to be told twice, Asgore handed Frisk to Toriel, and walked over to you, picking you up with ease.

“Don’t worry,” the former king said to you. “It’s over now; we’ll take you to be healed at the hospital.”

“No…” you murmured. “I…I just want to go home. Please just take me home.”

“But, ____,” Asgore began. You were too stubborn to listen, however.

“Please,” you begged. “Please, please, please, please…” Your mantra morphed into bitter tears as you sobbed into the boss monster’s chest. 

“…____...” said Sans gently. He looked at the other monsters. “…well, you heard ‘em. c’mon. it’s time to go home for good.”

With that, you were taken away. Papyrus, Undyne and Alphys continued their distraction until the others had gotten to the car. Only then did they retreat. As the red car returned down the street, and the guards swore angrily due to their failure, John stood at the entrance of the warehouse, reflecting in silence.


	11. Chapter 11

It was always a terrifying feeling when a close friend suddenly stopped communicating with you. Such terror was what Sans felt as he checked his text messages one morning. The past few days, things had been returning to normal. Frisk was back, monsterkind was at ease, and you were returning to your normal duties. You had made sure to keep in touch with Frisk and the monsters, whether it was through calls and texts, or coming over for dinner or a movie night. Sans, knowing what horror had been inflicted on you during your captivity, was especially close to you, always letting you know that he would support you. He thought he had been doing a decent job, but now he wasn’t so sure.

Sans would always text you around this time with a pun or some other sort of pick-me-up. You’d always respond within the next five minutes. Today was different. For ten minutes, Sans waited, pushing aside his fear by telling himself that you were probably oversleeping or something. He waited another five minutes. Then another. Then another. Finally, another 20 minutes had passed, and you still refused to respond. Anxious, the usually lazy skeleton forced himself out of bed, tossing on his hoodie, some shorts, and his slippers. He walked downstairs, into his and Papyrus’ living room, his cell phone clutched in his hand. 

“SANS?” Papyrus called from the kitchen. “IS THAT YOU? WHAT A SURPRISE! YOU’RE USUALLY NEVER UP THIS EARLY! COME! YOU CAN TEST OUT MY SPAGHETTI OMELETTE!” 

“sorry, pap,” Sans called back. “i’ll have to do it later. there’s, uh, somethin’ i gotta check.”

“IS IT THE UNIFORMED HUMAN?” asked the taller skeleton, his head appearing from within the kitchen. He smiled at his older brother. “YOU’VE BEEN TALKING TO THEM A LOT. AH! YOU MUST BE GOING TO MEET THEM FOR A DATE!” Blue creeped onto Sans’ cheekbones.

“c’mon, papyrus,” he said sheepishly. “it’s not like that.”

“WHATEVER YOU SAY, BROTHER. BUT WE SHALL SEE WHO HAS THE LAST LAUGH WHEN YOU AND THE OFFICER ARE STANDING AT THE ALTER.” Papyrus glanced to the side. “SPOILER ALERT: IT WILL BE ME! THE GREAT PAPYRUS! HEH! HEH! NYEH!”

Sans decided to let Papyrus win. If such a thought made him happy and ignorant to the idea that something was wrong with you, then Sans didn’t mind. Although, it had made him wonder…what would it be like to go on a date with you? Like, a real date? It was something he’d have to test in time. Sans shook his head; he had bigger things to worry about than dates. He needed to see if you were even alive.

Sans wasted no time, teleporting his way to your apartment. He knocked on the door, rocking nervously as he waited. After a few minutes, there was nothing. Sans’ soul was pounding. He knocked again.

“kid?” he called. “k-kiddo, it’s me, sans. c’mon, open the door for your ol’ buddy, eh? b-buddy? _-____?”

Nothing. By this point, Sans was growing desperate. He snapped his fingers, hearing the audible ‘click’ of the turning locks. He then entered. Everything was quiet. Too quiet. Sans’ pinpricks darted to and fro as he crept thought the apartment. Your bedroom door came into view. He could now hear movement and what sounded like…whimpering. Sans picked up his pace, pushing the door open. You were lying in bed, still dressed in your pajamas. You were tossing and turning, tears streaming down your face. Your legs lashed out, attacking at an invisible enemy.

“Stop,” you were begging. “Stop, get off me. Please!”

Sans rushed to the side of your bed, shaking your arm and tearing you away from your nightmares. Your eyes opened, glowing with fear.

“Huh!?” you gasped, looking around. “What!?” Sans’ hand rested on your cheek, pulling your face toward his.

“calm down,” he told you. “it’s ok, bud. it’s me, sans. nobody’s gonna hurt ya. i’m here.” His thumb phalanx rubbed the smooth skin on your cheek. The gentle gesture began to calm you down, your panicked breathing getting slower and slower.

“S-Sans…” you gasped, holding his hand with your own. 

“shh. you don’t gotta say anythin’. i already know.” 

“Sans…” You slowly wrapped your arms around his neck, hugging him as you began to sob into his neck vertebrae. You felt his hand stroke your head.

“it’s ok, it’s ok. just let it all out. i’m here, ____.”

For a while, you and Sans stayed there, you crying into Sans’ neck, and Sans whispering comforting words to you. You weren’t sure how much time passed before you were finally done crying. You pulled away, sniffling and wiping away tears. Part of Sans’ sweater was dark from the tears.

“Oh, God,” you chuckled sadly. “S-Sorry about that.”

“heh, don’t worry,” Sans shrugged. “it’ll dry.” He sat on your bed. “you ok?”

“I am now. How’d you get in here?”

“i…sorta used magic to unlock the door. i was worried about ya.” He watched as red coated your cheeks. “you hadn’t responded to my texts and I got worried. haha…makes me sound a little clingy, huh?”

“No, it’s fine,” you insisted. “I’m sorry I worried you. I probably should’ve told you I was taking off today. I just couldn’t handle going to work.”

“any particular reason why?”

“…I just…I just didn’t feel like getting out of bed,” you admitted. You sighed, letting your head fall. “Part of me wished I didn’t wake up at all.”

Sans’ smile fell slightly.

“now what would make ya say somethin’ like that?” he asked, his voice trembling slightly.

“I dunno, it’s complicated. There’s just so much that worries me, so much that frightens me. Ha…how can I call myself a protector of the people if I can’t get over something like this? I really am pathetic.”

Sans took your wrists. You looked at him and he stared into your eyes, a serious look glowing in his eyesockets.

“that’s not true,” he said firmly. “if you were pathetic, frisk would still be long gone. monsters would be back underground. hell,” he pointed to himself. “you even got this bag of bones to move around more in the span of a few days then papyrus could get me to move in a year.” He paused as you laughed a bit at that. “____, you’re doin’ a great job, kid. i’m rootin’ for ya. we’re all rootin’ for ya.”

“It’s hard to believe that,” you said.

“why?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“why?”

“It…It hurts to talk about it.”

“i can wait until you’re ready.”

“I…I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready.”

Sans laughed gently.

“well, we’ll have to see, won’t we?” he asked you.

“Yeah,” you replied with a nod. “I guess so. Uh…don’t you have work today?”

“yeah,” Sans shrugged carelessly. “i should probably get goin’. you should join me at grillby’s later, though. you can treat me.” He winked. “nah, just kiddin’. howzaboutit, bud?”

“Sure.”

“cool. later, ____.”

With that, Sans let himself out, leaving you to gather your thoughts. You hadn’t realized it until now, but your heart was racing at the thought of going to Grillby’s with Sans again. You then began to wonder…had he just asked you out on a date? Your cheeks heated up. No longer could you deny it; you liked Sans. A lot. And you had the feeling he felt the same way. But after what happened, you were confident in your ability to maintain such a relationship. Sans could be as patient as he liked, but at the end of the day, you had to overcome your own weaknesses. You sighed, leaning back. You had to tell him; you had to get the burden off your chest. If he knew what the matter was, he could help you. You could get over this, finally, and move on. You swallowed; this was going to hurt like hell.

 

At around 5:30, you arrived at Grillby’s. A wave of comfort washed over you as you entered, embracing its warm interior. It was amazing how a place you’d only been to once could feel this familiar to you. As you entered, the monster patrons waved to you, greeting you and thanking you for your services. It seemed word of you had spread over the past few days; monsters seemed to hold you in high regard now. You blushed, waving back modestly. You noticed Sans sitting at one of the booths, beckoning you over. As you approached, you could see three ketchup bottles on the table next to him, two of them empty, and the third halfway there. You smiled slightly; you’d never get over seeing that. You sat, nodding to him.

“yo,” Sans greeted. “glad ya could make it.”

“I’m glad to be here again, to be honest,” you replied.

“Don’t ya mean, “tibia” honest?” Sans winked, causing you to snort with laughter. 

“Dammit, Sans,” you gasped between giggles. Sans watched you, his eyes glowing with a feeling of care, of passion, of desire…

“you’re really cute when you’re happy, y’know?”

Your laughter stopped and you stared at Sans in surprise. He too looked shocked, as if he hadn’t expected himself to say something like that aloud. Time seemed to stop as you gazed into each other’s eyes. Eventually, you looked away, staring down at your fidgeting fingers. You blushed, a shy smile on your face.

“Thank you,” you murmured. “You’re not too bad-looking yourself.” Heh…never thought I’d be saying that to a skeleton, you thought. 

 

As the hours went by, your date was filled with puns, silly stories, drinks, great food, and a lot more ketchup. You felt at ease. Whether it was due to Sans’ calm nature, the homey feel of the restaurant itself, or the 5 or 6 beers you had drank, you weren’t sure. Honestly, it could’ve been all three. Despite this, however, a sense of dread still hung over you. You still had to tell Sans about your past if you had any hope of healing and moving on. You subconsciously nibbled on your lip, which Sans noticed.

“hey, if you’re still hungry, we can order somethin’ else,” he offered. Realizing what you were doing, you stopped, laughing awkwardly.

“Nah,” you said. “Um…listen, Sans. I need to talk to you about something.”

“shoot.”

“Uh…I’d rather not talk about it here.”

“oh. that’s fine; there’s a park across the street we can hang out in.”

So, after paying for your meal (Sans simply put his bill on his tab), you both left, walking across the street to the park. It was about 7:45 now; the sky was a mixture of orange, purple, and red, and the sun was beginning to disappear beyond the horizon. As you and Sans began to walk along the park trail, you watched squirrels scamper about, collecting acorns for winter. The leaves of the trees were falling, bright in color. Buttercups swayed in the autumn breeze. You rubbed your arms, regretting your decision to not bring a jacket. Sans, seeing this, laughed, unzipping his hoodie.

“here. have mine.”

“But what about you?” you asked him. 

“skeletons don’t get cold. it just goes right through us.” He winked at you. “trust me, it’s fine.” 

Nodding, you put the hoodie on. It was surprisingly warm, and it was ripe with the smell of tomatoes. It had to have been from all the ketchup, although, considering who Sans lived with, it could’ve been from pasta sauce as well. Aside from being a bit baggy on you, it was perfect. Beside you, Sans stood wearing a white T-shirt that looked as if it hadn’t been washed in a few days. Surprisingly, Sans didn’t smell at all. More magical monster shenanigans, you assumed. You both carried on, finding a nice little bench to sit on. You took a deep breath. This was it. You turned to Sans.

“Ok, so, I…I wanted to talk to you and try to get some of this crap off my chest,” you began. “I’m going to be honest: ever since Raymond…you know…I’ve been feeling so…guilty.”

“guilty?” echoed Sans. “why? it wasn’t your fault.”

“I know, I know, it’s just that…after so many years of being tormented by him, I just can’t help but blame myself.”

“how long has this gone on?”

“Since I was a kid, about 8 or 9. My mom and I weren’t doing so well for a while; my dad was never around, Mom’s job sucked, and we could only afford to live in a crappy motel. But that changed when Raymond entered the picture. They hit it off instantly when they first met, and soon they were dating. Then they got engaged, and eventually got married. We finally had money and a home, and I finally had a dad. Heh…good things never last, do they? Not long into the marriage, my stepdad started…watching me. He’d give me an interested look whenever I was alone with him. Eventually, he put his hands on me. H-He’d pull me in his lap and t-touch me all over. I’d ask him to stop, but he refuse. I was his “cute little toy”, he’d say. It was weird, but I accepted it for a few years. 

As I got older, I started to resist. I didn’t want to be touched, to be controlled…I began trying to fight him when he tried to touch me. That’d make him mad.” You pulled up the back up the hoodie and your shirt, exposing the fading scars. “He’d do shit like this when he got really mad. He’d yell at me that if I wasn’t such a “cutie”, he wouldn’t do the things he did, and I believed him like a fucking moron.” You paused, blinking back tears. Sans took your hand.

“you can stop if you want,” he told you comfortingly. “i don’t like seein’ ya like this.”

“I can’t stop,” you said. “I need to stop holding this in.” Sans prepared to argue, but thought against it. He understood; hell, he commended you for your bravery. There were things he kept secret as well, things that he hadn’t the courage to talk about yet. He decided not to stop you from healing. He nodded for you to continue.   
“Ok…So, uh, he’d…touch me whenever he could. It got worse as I went through puberty. He told me how fascinated he was in my growing body. He decided to “go further” with me, as he put it. That’s when the rape started. For so many years, he fucked me whenever Mom wasn’t doing it for him, and that was often. I couldn’t tell anyone; I was too afraid. I thought he’d beat me, or divorce Mom and send us back to our horrible lives. I could only put up with it until I left for law school. But just when I thought I was free, he comes back, the leader of a fucking anti-monster group. And he rapes me again. All the while, I can’t do shit because I’m terrified of him. I have the power to stop him, to send him to prison where he belongs, but I’m too much of a bitch to do it. I…I’m weak…I’m…I…” You began to cry, shaking violently despite the warmth of the hoodie. Sans pulled your arm, pulling you into a gentle embrace. For the second time that day, Sans comforted you as you cried away the pain brought to you by the actions of a madman. 

 

The blend of colors in the sky morphed into a single, solid back. The moon and stars appear, bathing the park in a white glow. You and Sans sat on the park bench, still holding each other. You had stop crying a while ago, but still, you held on. You needed this, to be with Sans. With him you felt as if you were worth something. You looked up at him with tired, red eyes. He stared back down at you, his pinpricks shimmering with something you couldn’t name. He tilted his head, his teeth pressing into your forehead. You didn’t even need the hoodie now; you felt so warm.


	12. Chapter 12

Buzz!

Buzz!

You had just began eating lunch at the police station when your cell phone vibrated. Pulling it out, you noticed that it was Sans. A smile appeared on your face as you answered.

“yo,” Sans’ gravelly voice came from the receiver. 

“Hey, Sansy,” you greeted in reply. “What’s up?”

“nothin’ much, just reading a book.”

“During work hours?”

“yep. can’t help it; i can’t seem to put it down. wanna know why?” You smirked, knowing this was leading to a joke.

“Why?” you asked.

“because it’s about anti-gravity.”

“Oh, Sans…” you said as you began to laugh. “You’re such a dork.”

“yeah, but i’m your dork,” was Sans’ reply. Your cheeks heated up at that. A week had passed since you and Sans’ date, and that night at the park. It was now safe to say that you and Sans were officially dating, meeting almost every night at Grillby’s for food and fun. While you were sure it was a bit too early for you to refer to Sans as your boyfriend, he often made it a point to let you know that you both were, indeed, developing a relationship with each other.

“Yeah, I guess you are,” you said warmly. “Hey, I saw this amphibian monster waiting for a bus earlier.”

“yeah?”

“Mmm-hmm. I guess his car got “toad”.”

The skeleton’s rich, velvety laugh was music to your ears, and the smile on your face grew in size.

“you, me, and tori should hang out sometime and just tell a bunch of jokes,” he said. “it’ll be hilarious. oh, speakin’ of tori, she and asgore are goin’ out tonight, so me and papyrus are looking after frisk. you should come over; we’re watchin’ a movie and orderin’ pizza.”

“Oh, yeah, sure,” you said. “Sounds like fun.”

“cool. See ya later then, goofball.”

“Later, Bonehead.” 

Click…

You put away your phone and continued eating. Now that you were off your phone you realized that a co-worker had entered the break room, and sat down across from you with their lunch. You paid them no mind until you realized just who they were exactly: John. You locked eyes with each other, neither of you daring to look away.

“What are you doing here?” you found yourself asking. 

“Hey, M.R.C. or not, I still work here,” he replied. His eyes fell to the table. “Well, that and another reason.”

“Which is?” you asked. 

“Heh…” John laughed. “Let’s just say, I’m making up for letting you be taken away. Raymond was pissed at me when he found out you got away on my watch. I’m supposed to find you and report back to him.” 

“Well, you’ve done the first part,” you tried your hardest to hide the nervousness in your voice. “Are you going to--”

“No,” interrupted John. You cocked a brow curiously.

“Why?”

“I’m not letting that happen to you again. Look, it’s time I came clean. I fucked up big time. Everything that happened, it was all me. I called the couple to kidnap the kid when you went to the movies. I let them know you were coming so they could try to kill you. I convinced those cops to come after you and the skeleton. I…I’ve done so much to hurt you. I’m not going to apologize, though; I don’t deserve your forgiveness. I should’ve known better a long ago.”

You opened your mouth, but nothing came out. You weren’t sure what to say at this point. John was right; he really did fuck up. But regardless of that, you couldn’t be entirely angry at him. He seemed to genuinely regret everything he’d done. While there was no way you could ignore what he did, you didn’t really feel like holding a grudge. 

“I’ll try to forgive you,” you eventually said.

“I can’t ask you to do that,” John argued. 

“Think of it as payback,” you said. “I’m punishing you with kindness.” John scoffed.

“That’s fair, I guess.” He closed his eyes. “Well, I guess it’s safe to say that I’m done with the M.R.C.”

You nodded. “That’s good. What do you plan to do now?”

“To be honest, I don’t know. I mean, I’m not trying to get rid of monsters anymore, but I’m not sure I trust them yet.”

“Perhaps we can change that,” you suggested, earning a curious glance from John. “I’m meeting with my friends tonight. Perhaps you could meet them.” 

“…Why do I get the feeling Mr. Bad Time’s gonna be a part of this?” murmured John. 

You knew instantly who he was referring to. “Don’t worry about him,” you said. “He may be suspicious of you, but he won’t hurt you, unless you provoke him. You won’t do that, right?”

“Of course not.”

“Then you’ll be fine. Are you coming, then?”

“Sure, I’ll come.”

“Great.” You flashed a genuine smile at him. “Nice to see you making an effort to be less of an asshole.”

John laughed, smiling slightly. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

 

That evening, your cruiser pulled into the parking lot of the skelebros’ house. Turning your car off, you looked over at John. His face was like stone as he stared at the house, but you could just barely see his body trembling. You touched his shoulder.

“It’s ok,” you told him. “You’re ok. No one’s going to hurt you. We’re going to have fun, alright?”

“Mmm,” John grunted, nodding his head.

“You ready?” you asked.

John took a deep breath. “…Yeah…” 

“Let’s go.”

With that, you and John exited the cruiser and made your way to the front door. You knocked, and it opened not a second later to reveal Papyrus.

“GREETINGS, UNIFORMED HUMAN!” he boomed. He then noticed John standing next to you. He took a moment to look back and forth between you and John. “HUMAN, AM I GOING MAD, OR HAVE YOU CLONED YOURSELF?”

“No, no,” you said. “This is my co-worker, John.” John waved awkwardly, looking slightly alarmed at the sight and sound of the overzealous skeleton.

“ANOTHER HUMAN TO BECOME FRIENDS WITH?” said Papyrus, a twinkle forming in his eyesockets. “WOWIE!” He shouted over his shoulder. “OH, PLEASE COME IN!” Papyrus grabbed your and John’s hands, pulling you inside and closing the door behind you. The rich aroma of pasta sauce filled the air. You looked at Papyrus with confusion.

“Are you making spaghetti?” you asked. “I thought we were having pizza.”

“WE ARE. BUT I REFUSE TO EAT THAT GREASY, UNHEALTHY TAKEOUT PIZZA. I’M MAKING MY OWN, BUT WITH A SPAGHETTI TOPPING. SPAGHETTI PIZZA, IF YOU WILL.” You noticed John perk up at the sound of that.

“That…doesn’t sound too bad, actually,” he admitted. 

“AH!” Papyrus beamed at John. “YOU ARE VERY SMART INDEED, NEW HUMAN! WILL YOU DO ME THE HONOR OF HELPING ME EAT THE SPAGHETTI PIZZA?”

“Uh…” John began, looking at you. You nodded encouragingly. “Sure, alright.” 

“WOWIE,” cheered the skeleton. “THIS NIGHT JUST GOT A MILLION TIMES BETTER.” He glanced to the side. “NOW, IF ONLY SANS WOULD GET HIS LAZY BONES OUT OF BED AND COME DOWNSTAIRS…”

“I’ll get him,” you offered. You looked at John. “I’ll be right back.”

“Mmm,” nodded John.

“COME, HUMAN!” Papyrus said to John, taking his hand. “TAKE A SEAT. MAKE YOURSELF COMFORTABLE.”

John allowed himself to be brought to the couch, where Frisk was already sitting. The child stared up at John, a knowing look in their eyes. Regardless of the look, they smiled politely and waved. John nodded in reply. This…was awkward. Not a week ago, John was trying to keep Frisk in captivity to drive the monster race back into Mt. Ebott. Now, they were sitting on the couch together for a movie night. John decided to ignore it as best he could. You, meanwhile, had made it upstairs, approaching Sans’ bedroom door. This was a first for you, going to Sans’ room. Your heart raced in anticipation; what would it be like? Judging by the fiery glow coming from the bottom of the door, you expected some crazy things to be going on in there. Odd, you thought. You often associated “crazy” with Papyrus, given his energetic and child-like nature. Maybe it was just another one of Sans’ many secrets.

You stood at the door and knocked. No response. You knocked again, but still, nothing. You checked the doorknob. To your surprise, it was unlocked. Slowly, you turned the doorknob, and entered. You saw nothing but darkness. Hesitating, you reached for the light switch.

Click!

The bed room was bathed in light, allowing you to marvel at the dump that was Sans’ bedroom. A tornado of trash (as well as an annoying-looking dog) swirled in a corner. Condiment bottles, papers and other junk littered the floor. A treadmill, dusty from lack of use, sat in the center of the room, acting more like a clothes rack for Sans’ wrinkled hoodies and shirts. Sans himself was sleeping on a mattress, the sheets messily thrown over him. A half-empty bottle of ketchup was clutched in his phalanges. You weren’t sure whether to be impressed or disappointed. Remembering why you were here, you went over to the mattress and sat down on it, shaking him.

“Sans,” you called. “Wake up.” 

“can’t...” Sans grumbled, his eyesockets staying shut. “too lazy.”

“If you’re too lazy to wake up, how are you responding to me?” you asked.

“because i’m too lazy to stay asleep.” You shook your head.

“Sans…”

Sans opened an eyesocket, laughing.

“ok, ok, i’m up,” he said. He leisurely sat up, taking a drink from the ketchup bottle as he did. A dollop of ketchup stained the corner of his mouth. 

“Uh, you got a little something…” you trailed off, pointing at the corner of your own mouth. Sans glanced down and chuckled.

“huh, so i do,” he said. He glanced up at you, smirking flirtatiously. “wanna clean it for me?” Blushing furiously, you shoved him, laughing.

“Oh, stop,” you chuckled. He chuckled as well.

“nah, i’m kiddin’,” he said. “so, I’m guessin’ ya want me to go downstairs now, huh?”

“If you wouldn’t mind.”

“jeez, what a workout…but alright.”

As Sans got up and approached his bedroom door, your mind wandered back to John. Your heart raced at the thought of Sans seeing John so close to Frisk and his brother, and exploding because of it. You rushed to him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Wait,” you said. Sans glanced back at you.

“hmm?” he said. “what’s wrong?”

“There’s, uh, something I have to tell you…” Sans nodded for you to continue. “I…I invited a guest.” You noticed Sans’ eyesockets widening. “Now, don’t get upset,” you said quickly. “He…He’s not the same man he was before. He wants to be different. He wants to change. I thought…maybe he could see what monsters were really like if I brought him over with me. Please, Sans, just be nice this once? If not for him, do it for Papyrus. He really likes him.”

Sans was silent for a few minutes, his eyesockets closed and a thoughtful look on his face. When he reopened them, he sighed.

“alright,” he said. “but he’d better not do anything stupid.”

“Thanks, Sans,” you sighed in relief, cupping his cheek with your hand and wiping away the ketchup with your thumb. “Now, we’d better get downstairs. It smells like Papyrus’ spaghetti pizza is burning.”

 

The pizza had been saved. Barely. Papyrus, John and Frisk stood in the kitchen, staring at the smoking, overcooked mess. While Frisk and John looked sadly at the pitiful thing, Papyrus looked very proud of himself, oblivious to the fact that neither spaghetti nor pizza was meant to be blackish-brown. 

“WHAT A SCRUMDIDDLYUMPTIOUS LOOKING PIZZA, PERFECTLY CRAFTED AND COOKED BY ME, PAPYRUS, THE SOMEDAY WORLD FAMOUS CHEF!” Papyrus proclaimed. John stared at him in disbelief. “AND QUITE HEALTHY, TOO. NOT LIKE THAT GREASY, DISGUSTING TAKE-OUT PIZZA.” Papyrus glanced at John. “NEW HUMAN FRIEND! PLEASE DO ME THE HONOR OF TRYING THE FIRST SLICE!”

John prepared to refuse, but the words got caught in his throat when you and Sans appeared at the kitchen door. Sans gave him a long, hard stare, as if daring him to say no to his brother. 

“Er, uh…sure,” John finally said. He watched as Papyrus cut a slice and presented it to him with an eager smile. John took it slowly, mentally preparing himself for the flavor. He took a bite. Involuntarily, he made a face, one that sent you and Frisk into quiet fits of laughter. Even Sans couldn’t keep up his angry act, his smile widening in amusement. 

“WELL?” Papyrus began, a hopeful look on his face. “HOW DO YOU LIKE IT?” John swallowed, his brain scrambling to form some sort of feedback. 

“I-It’s amazing,” he lied. Fortunately, Papyrus bought the lie, and his chest swelled with pride.

“OF COURSE IT IS,” he said. “BECAUSE IT WAS MADE BY ME, THE GREAT AND CULINARILY TALENTED PAPYRUS! COME, HUMAN! LET’S TAKE OUR DELICIOUS AND HEALTHY FEAST TO THE LIVING ROOM!” Papyrus took the spaghetti pizza and rushed into the living room. Sans laughed slightly.

“you’re headin’ on the right track,” he said. “good on ya, bud.”

John was taken aback. “You’re not going to hold a grudge either?”

“nope,” Sans said. “too lazy to. besides, i got a feelin’ you won’t be causing us anymore trouble.” A knock at the door caught Sans’ attention. “sounds like the pizza’s here. don’t worry; we’ll sneak ya a slice.”

With that, you, Sans, and Frisk retreated to the living room. John watched as they left, noticing that his heart hadn’t been beating as fast as it once was. In fact, he was starting to feel rather relaxed. The house was pleasantly warm, a friendly feeling was in the air, and mouthwatering smell of pepperoni and mozzarella had overpowered the smell of burning crust. It was so strange, thought John. He’d never thought he’d be sitting down and eating pizza with the same monster who nearly blasted his head off weeks ago. John often heard that monsters were made of compassion, mercy, and love. For so long, he refused to believe it. They were freaks with dangerous magic; they couldn’t be trusted. Those were the thoughts John used to think. Now, he wasn’t sure if he believed them anymore. 

Everything was set up. The pizza was paid for, drinks had been prepared, the movie was starting, and the room was dark. Sans sat at the end of the couch, next to you and Frisk, who sat comfortably in your lap. Next to you and Frisk was John, who was trying his hardest to chew on a slice of spaghetti pizza. As promised, a slice of pepperoni pizza had been snuck onto his plate. A cheerful Papyrus sat next to John, eating his slice of spaghetti pizza as if it were nothing. A serene silence fell over the room as the movie began. 

CRASH!

No sooner had the main character of the movie said their first word, the sound of glass breaking filled the air. Everyone’s head shot towards the direction of the noise. The living room window had been shattered, a cylindrical object lying amid shards of glass. Before anyone could comprehend what was going on, there was a bang and a flash. You cried out, your eyes slamming shut and a high-pitched ringing assaulting your ears. Your body teetered, falling over. You had no idea what was going on around you; your head was spinning far too much. You felt hands grab your arms, pulling you up and leading you away. For a few excruciatingly-long seconds, you had no idea what was happening. Finally, you came to. What you saw before you made you wish you hadn’t. You were in the grasp of two strong, armed men. The living room was filled with other men, all of them holding and retraining your friends. Standing in the center of the madness was Raymond, who was smiling cockily at you.

“Thought you could get away from me, eh?” he said. He laughed, shaking his head. “You never learn. Oh well, no matter. I have you for good now, you and the Ambassador.” He glanced over at John. “Oh, Johnny boy, I’ve been wondering why you haven’t been talking to me. You’re a monster-loving traitor just like my step-kid.”

“N-No, it’s not like that--” John tried to explain, only for Raymond to kick him in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain.

“STOP!” Papyrus cried, his innocent eyesockets not used to the sight of such acts. “P-PLEASE, DON’T HURT HIM!” John slowly let out a pain-filled chuckle.

“I-It’s alright,” he whispered. “I deserve it.”

“DON’T SAY THAT,” Papyrus argued. “YOU ARE MY FRIEND. FRIENDS DON’T LET FRIENDS GET HURT!”

“Oh, shut up, you miserable pile of bones,” Raymond spat, aiming a kick at Papyrus. A blue aura caught his foot. He looked at Sans, who was giving him a hard smile. His glowing eye returned, flames whipping against the side of his head. Even though he never opened his mouth to speak, the voice he spoke in now sounded as if it was being spoken through tightly gritted teeth.

“you’re really tryin’ my patience, pal,” he began. “the only reason you’re not splattered all over the walls right now is because i’m not gonna hurt one of my friends tryin’ to take you out. now, i couldn’t give a crap what you do to me, but i don’t wanna see you puttin’ a finger on my brother.”

“Fine, I won’t touch him,” Raymond replied, not appearing to be phased at all by Sans’ threatening tone. “However, I can’t say the same for them.” He pointed to some of his men, who suddenly advanced on Papyrus. You watched in horror as they began at beat the skeleton with their bare fists. Papyrus was crying and pleading for mercy, but it only seemed to encourage the flurry of punches. You dared to look at Sans, seeing as he tried his absolute hardest not to show his terror and pain at the sight of his own brother’s torture. He tried multiple times to look away, only to have his head forced back in the direction of what was happening. All the while, Raymond watched on, pleased. 

“You know what?” he said. “Let’s add John to the mix, and don’t stop until they’re both dead.”

“What?” John said, watching in horror as men advanced on him as well. “N-No, wait! Stop! NO!” John’s cries of pain mixed with Papyrus’. As the situation grew worse and worse, a feeling bubbled up inside you, causing your body to shake. Was it fear? No, it was greater than that…Raymond turned, looking towards you and poking out his lip in mock concern.

“Aw, my cute little toy’s scared,” he cooed in a sickeningly-sweet voice. He waved his hand carelessly. “Take them and the brat to our vehicles.”

You felt yourself being pulled out of the house, all the while the feeling inside you growing stronger with each passing second. You felt warm…no, hot…no, you were burning up. Anger…that had to have been what you were feeling now. It was much worse than what you felt before, back at the killer couple’s house. You couldn’t recall ever feeling this sort of rage within you before, and as it increased, so did the burning sensation. Your soul suddenly leapt out of your chest and into view. As the days passed since your monster friends gave part of their souls to you, the weaker souls began to fade, as did their magic. Now, your soul was, for the most part, the original red it once was. However, one color still remained: white. The fragments of Toriel and Asgore’s souls still remained. Anger activated their magic, you had learned. Now, that magic was being activated again. The burning feeling gathered together in your hands, and you could see the orange glow radiating from them. The men holding you looked down, seeing the fire forming on your fists. In their surprise, they stopped. Your mouth opened, and you spoke in a low voice.

“Let. Me. GO!”

You lashed out, your flame-covered fists catching both men in the jaw. They grunted as they backed off, dark fist-marks on their faces. You turned slowly, staring them down with a look of unbridled rage. Fear took over them, and they backed off, as did the men who held Frisk. Frisk rushed to you.

“Stay near me,” you said to them, your voice softening slightly. Frisk nodded, and together, you both returned to the skelebros’ house. Raymond and the remaining men looked at you as you reentered, noticing the raging infernos on your hands. Raymond’s eyes widened; he’d never seen this side of you, hell, he didn’t even think you had a side like this. It…It frightened him. He turned to his men.

“S-Stop them,” he ordered. “Quick, before they try anything!”

‘But, sir…” one of them began, but a glare from Raymond cut him off.

“Now!” shouted your stepfather. Reluctantly, Raymond’s men advanced on you. As the first man came close, you raised a fist, and swung it into his chest. He staggered back, crying in pain as his chest was singed with the flame. The other men stopped in their tracks, backing up, no matter how much Raymond ordered for them to attack. A human using monster magic was something they hadn’t seen before, and, quite frankly, they preferred to stay away from such a thing. Raymond’s men abandoned him, their fear overpowering their wish to capture Frisk. Now, Raymond was alone, staring face to face with you. Sans and Frisk watched you, silently cheering for you, while Papyrus and John recovered from their beating. 

“You and me,” you said to your stepfather. “We finish this now.”

Everything suddenly grew dark around you; all you could see was Raymond standing before you. A box appeared in front of you, a single word on it: FIGHT. You decided to oblige, swinging a flaming fist. It hit Raymond right in the arm, burning his clothes and scorching his skin. A bar appeared, showing the amount of damage you just caused him. It wasn’t much, but it was something. Raymond gripped his wounded arm tightly, glaring back at you. He then brought up his own fists, attacking you. You dodged one swing, but the second one hit you right in the cheek. You staggered back, feeling your back hitting a wall. Raymond pinned you against the wall, his arms at the sides of your head. A smirk appeared on his face as he realized that he had the upper hand on you. His hand reached down to your crotch, and you felt him touch you in the place he had touched you so many times before. Your rage began to fade, being replaced with dread.

“N-No,” you gasped, shaking your head. “Stop!” Raymond touched harder, grunting sensually, as he always used to do. Your eyes began to sting as memories came flooding back, the past haunting you once more. The flames on your hands were beginning to die out. It seemed he finally had you right where he wanted you…

“____!” you suddenly heard Sans call out to you. “don’t give up! remember what I told ya: we’re rootin’ for ya, i’m rootin’ for ya. don’t let this bastard control you like that anymore.”

Frisk encouraged you as well, telling you to stay determined, and that you could win this. You could hear Papyrus and John calling to you as well.

“HUMAN!” yelled Papyrus. “I BELIEVE IN YOU! YOU CAN WIN THIS BATTLE NO PROBLEM!”

“Yeah,” added John. “Show this asshole what for!”

With the support and aid of your friends, you felt your will to fight returning. You shoved Raymond as hard as you could, pushing him off you. The flames returned to your hands, burning him. He growled in pain, patting away the flames on his burning shirt. With another glare aimed at you, he attacked again. You stood your ground, fists raised. A fist-fight ensued, both you and Raymond throwing and receiving punches. 

SMACK!

Your head flew backwards, a tooth flying out of your mouth. 

SMACK! SMACK!

Raymond’s eye was burned, as well as his stomach.

PTOOWY!

Spit flew in your eyes.

TWACK!

Your knee had connected itself with Raymond’s crotch, sending pain through his entire body. He staggered, falling over. Kicking him down, you straddled your stepfather’s waist, punching him repeatedly. The bar appeared with each blow, more of his health appearing to be taken away. Tears rolled down your cheeks as you delivered punishment for every foul deed the man had ever committed towards you, your friends, and all of monster kind. Eventually, he was knocked down to a sliver of health. He laid there, staring up at you with wide eyes. He was completely at your mercy by this point. Your hand gripped the collar of his shirt and your fist aimed for his face, preparing to end him for good. Raymond threw up a hand to shield himself.

“W-Wait!” he begged, the proud and dangerous tone he once used long gone. “Please…d-don’t kill me. Please, have mercy!” You froze for a moment, before laughing in disbelief.

“After everything you’ve done,” you whispered. “You expect me to be merciful? You’ve done nothing but hurt me and the people I care about. I’ve lived in terror for so many years because of the shit you put me through. After all of that, you want me to just forget that? Fuck no. You’re going to pay.”

Raymond closed his eyes tightly, preparing for the punch that would end it. But…it didn’t come. He waited and waited, but still, there was nothing. Instead, he felt himself be pulled onto his feet, his hands forced behind his back. He dared to open his eyes.

“What?” he murmured.

“You’re under arrest,” you said. “You’re reign of terror is over.”

“…But I thought…”

“No,” you interrupted. “I’m not going to kill you. I’d like my record to stay clean. Besides, that would be too easy. No, I’m sending you to prison. There, you’ll meet a lot of men like yourself…soulless, controlling…the kind of men you wouldn’t want to drop soap next to in the shower…you see where I’m going with this? Everything you’ve done is coming right back to you.”

With that, you forced Raymond outside, throwing him in the back seat of your cruiser. You sighed in relief. It was over; the M.R.C. was done for. You returned to the house. Sans and Frisk were helping Papyrus and John to their feet. As soon as the taller skeleton saw you, however, he rushed to you, ignoring his injuries, and gave you a hug.

“HUMAN!” he said happily. “YOU DID IT, JUST LIKE I KNEW YOU COULD!”

“Papyrus,” you whispered, carefully hugging him back. “Thank you.”

Frisk joined in, and you gently held them as well. You turned to John and Sans.

“Great job,” said John, giving you a smile. “You really did a number on that bastard.”

“Thanks,” you said, nodding gratefully.

“i’m proud of ya,” Sans said, giving you a gentle look. “ya did good, goofball.”

“Sans…” you cooed, coming over and wrapping your arms around him. He slowly returned the favor. Your lips pressed against his cheek, and you felt him warm up against your skin.

“____...” he murmured in reply. This…this was perfect…

It seemed that now, finally, things were going to be alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, second to last chapter! It's been fun, but we're almost done!


	13. The End

Your body rustled your bed’s sheets as you tossed and turned. You flipped your pillow and rearranged your position multiple times. Nothing worked; you just couldn’t seem to fall asleep. It was odd; every night leading up to this one had been just fine, and you had got a full night’s sleep with little to no problems. Tonight, your body seemed to have different plans. 

You checked your phone, squinting at the brightness of the screen. It was midnight, and there you were, wide awake. Sighing, you decided to play some music in an effort to lull you to sleep. As one of your favorite acoustic pieces filled the room, you closed your eyes, hoping for sleep to come. 

Buzz…

Your eye opened as you heard your phone vibrate. You saw a notification at the top of the screen: a new text. Opening your messages, you saw that it was from Sans. 

“hey,” it read. “can’t sleep?”

“Nope,” you texted back. “You?”

“nope. hey, you know about nasa?” …Odd conversation starter, you thought. Then again, knowing Sans, this was most likely going to be a joke.

“know how they organize a party?” Sans texted.

“How?”

“they planet.”

“God…” you whispered, burying your face into your pillow and shaking with laughter. As soon as you recovered, you texted: “That’s interesting.”

“your turn.”

You scanned your brain for something that could be could, before you typed, “Know what happens when chemists die?”

“what?” texted Sans.

“They barium.” You also added a “:P” for emphasis. You could just imagine that beautiful laugh of his, accompanied by the odd, but equally as charming rattling of his bones. You felt a pleasant shiver run down your spine at the thought.

“lol that’s cute,” was Sans’ reply. “i’m bored. wanna hang out?”

“At midnight?”

“sure. we can go for a walk in the park or somethin’. maybe all the walkin’ll make us tired enough to go to sleep.”

“Sounds reasonable,” you texted. “Shall I meet you there?”

“sure.”

“Ok. See you later.”

Dragging yourself out of bed, you threw on some clothes, a thick coat, and your boots, before heading outside. The ground was covered by a thick blanket of snow, and snowflakes fell to the ground like sugar from a sifter. It was December now, about a month since Raymond’s arrest and the fall of the M.R.C. Fall became winter, and with that came cold winds, ice, and snow. Not that it bothered you much, you really enjoyed winter’s beauty. You got into your cruiser, and was headed to the park near Grillby’s.

 

The park was a breathtaking sight, snow covering the once green ground like a cold, soft carpet. Icicles hung from the branches of the trees, the moonlight causing them to shine like crystals. Your boots caused the snow to crunch as you walked along the park trail, your eyes searching for Sans. You spotted him sitting on a park bench, his pinpricks gazing contemplatively at the stars. You couldn’t help but marvel at how handsome he looked with his thoughtful stare, his gentle smile, the mysterious vibe that lingered off him due to his drawn hood…You started to think that maybe it wasn’t the cold that was making you shiver. He suddenly met your eyes, tearing you from your thoughts, and his smile seemed to grow a bit. 

“s’up, bud?” he greeted when you reached him.

“Nothing much,” you replied. “Just a sudden case of insomnia. You know how it goes.”

“yeah, insomnia’s no joke.” Sans slowly began to smirk. “know what is?”

“Hmm?” you murmured, cocking a brow. Sans held up a hand, extending a finger towards you.

“pull my finger,” said Sans, stifling a laugh. 

“Sans,” you said in mock disappointment. “Really? You can do better than that.”

“no, this is a good one, trust me.” Sans’ pinpricks seemed to grow larger as he stared at you in anticipation. You couldn’t help but laugh a little. Shaking your head, you raised your hand, grabbing his finger and pulling it. You prepared yourself for a farting sound, the way these types of jokes always ended. However, the sound you heard as you pulled was not one of flatulence, but instead…

POP!

You stared down at your hand, your eyes wide as you saw San’s detached finger in your hand, the individual bones falling out of place. Sans began to laugh uncontrollably, his hand gripping the bridge’s rail to keep himself from falling over.

“y-you should see your face right now!” Sans said between laughs. “oh man, i got ya good, bud!” 

“…What the fuck…?” was all you could whisper, your eyes glued to the bones in your hand. You looked up at Sans. “Did I just…pull your finger off?” Sans slowly recovered from his laughing fit. He wiped a stray tear from his face.

“yep, ya surely did,” he replied, looking satisfied with himself.

“That…didn’t hurt you, did it?”

“nah, it’s all good. look.” Sans reached for your hand. As he got closer, the bones in your hand began to shake. Suddenly, they reassembled themselves onto Sans’ hand, giving him all five fingers again. “see? good as new. neat, huh?”

“Amazing…” you gasped, taking Sans’ hand and examining it. 

“heh…” Sans laughed, a tint of blue on his cheekbones. “nah…if ya wanna see amazin’, you should see papyrus do a jigsaw puzzle blindfolded.”

“Hmm,” you murmured. “Well, that does sound pretty impressive, but that doesn’t make you any less cool.” Sans smiled slightly.

“heheh…thanks...we should, uh, get on with that walk now, eh?” You nodded, and with that, you and Sans began walking side by side, walking back to the park trail. You felt something in your hand and looked down. A red blush covered your cheeks when you realized that you hadn’t let go of Sans’ hand. Sans didn’t seem to notice. No, no he had to be noticing; his grip on your hand was tightening a little. Did he…want this? Your heart raced at the thought, and you looked away, trying to hide the grin forming on your face. 

Your walk continued, and you and Sans found yourselves approaching a large hill covered in snow. You stared at the hill and began to reminisce.

“You know, when I was little, I used to sled down hills just like this one,” you said quietly. “It was so much fun…I’d do it for hours, and…I loved how it felt…The wind rushing in my hair, the adrenaline…I miss it. I can’t really say that for a lot of things in my childhood, but I definitely missed that.”

“you could do it again, y’know,” said Sans. You looked at him sadly.

“Not without a sled.”

“oh?” 

The next thing you know, you and Sans were at the top of the hill, overlooking the winter wonderland that was the rest of the park. You looked at Sans, your eyes wide.

“Sans!” you cried. “Wh-What…?”

“follow my lead, bud,” Sans commanded. You watched as he let gravity pull him to the ground. He began rolling down the side of the hill, the deep snow giving him a soft landing at the bottom. Slowly, he got up, smiling up at you from the base of the hill. “your turn,” he called up to you. You looked over the hillside, biting your lip. Well, it was worth a shot, you thought. You got to the ground, lied down, and began to roll. As gravity pulled you down, a rush of adrenaline shot through you, one that got your heart pumping and caused you to let out a whoop of excitement. In seconds, it was over, and you were lying on your back at the base of the hill. You breathed heavily, taking a moment to recover. Sans stood over you, smiling down amusedly at you.

“What…” you gasped. “What a rush…” A smile spread across your face. “Let’s do it again!”

And so you did. Sans teleported you and himself to the top of the hill, and you allowed yourselves to be your own sleds, rolling down the hill again and again and again. How many times you rolled down that hill, you weren’t sure, but as the minutes passed, you felt yourself growing tired. On your final roll, you landed on top of Sans. You were laughing, harder than you could ever recall laughing in your entire life. You glanced down at Sans; the skeleton was looking at you with a look of content…as if being with you filled him with a sense of relaxation. Your heart raced as a feeling came over you, once you felt so many times in Sans’ presence. Before, you couldn’t tell what it was, but now, you realized it: you really were falling for Sans. Your eyes wandered to his smile. How would it feel, you thought, to kiss him? You’d given him several kisses on the head and cheek, but to actually go for the mouth…that would be an adventure. Especially since he had no lips. Sans, noticing where you eyes were focusing, chuckled.

“you know, if ya wanna kiss me, you don’t have to be afraid,” he said. Your face was on fire, causing him to laugh more. You felt his hand sneak its way onto your cheek, pulling you down. Your lips pressed against his teeth, a tingling sensation filling you. Was it you? Was it magic? You weren’t sure. All you knew what that it felt wonderful. Your head tilted to the side, a move you’d seen in so many movies and novels it was borderline cliché. But Sans didn’t seem to care, after all, this was your first kiss. The thin phalanges of Sans’ fingers ran lazily through your hair, and as the kiss neared its end, his hand returned to your cheek, the tip of his thumb making shapes against your soft skin. You hadn’t even realized your eyes had closed during the kiss, and they fluttered open, seeing Sans gaze up at you with a look so full of passion, you felt like you’d melt in his arms right then and there. There was silence between you, the only noise being your beating heart. You both breathed quietly, the air filling with the combined clouds of smoke escaping your mouths, a symbol of your relationship upgrade. It was clear to the both of you that you were more than just friends or dates. Sans was now your boyfriend.

“So…” you finally said. “I guess we’re a thing now?”

“guess so,” replied Sans, continuing to idly doodle on your skin. “is that cool?” You smiled, leaning down to kiss the bridge of his nasal cavity.

“Of course,” you said. You pulled away, taking his hand and helping him stand up. You rubbed at your eyes. “We should probably get home now.”

“y’know, it’s a bit of a drive back to your place. why don’t ya stay at me and pap’s place tonight? and since we’re a thing, you can sleep in my bed.” If you turned any redder, you would be mistaken for a large tomato. Sans laughed. “heh…just kiddin’. seriously though, you should stay at our place. the last thing i want is for my goofball to get into an accident.”

“Alright,” you said, taking his hand and walking in the direction of your cruiser. “Thanks, bonehead.”

“hehehe…don’t mention it, goofball.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, we did it. We've made it to the end, and finally, you and Sans are officially together. This has been a really fun story to write, and I thank everyone for their support these past few months. Now, there was something that's been on my mind for a while, and I wanted to wait until the end of the story to bring it up. I really like the Reader character in this story (who I've nicknamed "Police-chan"). I kinda want to use them again in little oneshots and stuff that take place after the story. Y'know, some romance, some slice-of-life, that kinda stuff. If anyone's interested, I may consider doing a short collection of stories like that. Thanks again to everyone who's read and followed this story. :)


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